President Uhuru Kenyatta’s allies are promising fireworks in Mt Kenya in renewed efforts to popularise the Building Bridges Initiative in the region.
They are wooing MCAs to be a core component of the engine that will drive the BBI campaigns.
The plan is to defeat the ‘misconceptions around the BBI’, especially in the face of the recent explosive letter by Murang’a Senator Irungu Kang’ata.
The Senate Majority Whip raised the alarm that the document is unpopular in the region and hence faces defeat if the prevailing situation isn’t remedied.
The president’s men, however, say it is too early to judge the document as a structured campaign is yet to be launched.
They hold that campaigns would gather steam but will go full throttle once the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission certifies the BBI signatures.
Despite this, small-time efforts have been rolled out to discourage the masses from perceptions around the BBI, among them those that portray it as a contest between ODM leader Raila Odinga and DP William Ruto.
Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu said: “We will sell the BBI. We don’t want the President to come and sell it. We want to prove to Kang’ata and company that what they did was wrong. We are eyeing 80-90 per cent support in Mt Kenya.”
The campaign, they say, will also seek to clarify the benefits of the Bridges initiative for common mwananchi; as a counter to the message by the Tangatanga side that the BBI is about creating positions for dynasties.
Kandara MP Alice Wahome recently launched a fierce attack on President Kenyatta, claiming he was using the document to extend his term in office.
Ruto men have equally asked Kenyans to reject the bill, saying it would create an expensive government. But the President’s men concede that such a statement and other falsehoods around the BBI process is a recipe for trouble.
Ndaragwa MP Jeremiah Kioni told the Star they are reaching out to members of county assemblies; being the next frontier for BBI battle should IEBC give process the all-clear to proceed.
“We are dealing with county assemblies. Lobbying is already ongoing since that is where the next field of play is when they (MCAs) get to process the bill,” he said.
Kioni, chair of Constitution Implementation Oversight Committee, said: “Supporters of BBI have not gone out to speak of it loudly and in a programmed manner.
“Now that we have dealt with major issues like schools being opened and the country knowing how to deal with Covid-19, we will be able to concentrate on BBI as a responsible leadership.”
Meru Governor Kiraitu Murungi said: “We have been listening and its true there are lots of murmurs and grumbling about the BBI.”
He said the challenge is that many people have not read the document, which would be distributed after the IEBC approves the bill.
The governor said they would encourage the masses to take a look at the BBI as one that is good for the country.
“Apart from addressing the cycle of violence, economic stability is very important. Taking, for instance, the county revenue share being increased to 35 per cent, I don’t understand the complaints that BBI is not addressing the needs of the common man‚” he said
Kiraitu said it will be foolish to reject all these aspects of the initiative because someone says it is for others.
The governor said they will attempt to deal with the complication created by the perception that the BBI is a contest between Raila and Ruto.
“We urge the people to remove the two from the picture. BBI is for us. We have a lot of interest in it. We cannot bring 2022 issues to come and do away with the good issues in the BBI,” Kiraitu said.
National Assembly Majority leader Amos Kimunya said they have been slow at launching campaigns as it is not just about selling the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
He said the most important thing is to wait for the IEBC. Once it has released the results of signature verification, the secretariat will be launching the civic education programme.
“Then people will go to the ground knowing what they are doing. You can’t just sell the bill. People need to see what recommendations will come in the bill and those that will come in other forms in a simpler way that wananchi understand,” the Kipipiri MP said.
“People are not just voting for a bill but need to see the bill within the context of the wider report,” he said, adding that he is not for a multiple-question referendum as peddled by some quarters.
He said various leaders may have different programmes, but the official one will be unveiled by the BBI secretariat headed by Suna East MP Junet Mohamed and former Dagoretti South MP Dennis Waweru.
“Some of the small-time programmes here and there are individual efforts which I have equally started here in Nyandarua,” Kimunya said.