Six ODM members of Parliament on Saturday challenged Deputy President Dr William Ruto to declare his stand on the Building Bridges Initiative, (BBI).
Led by Siaya Senator James Orengo, they said the DP has been sending mixed signals, leading to speculation that he is opposed to the drive.
Mr Orengo told Dr Ruto that it was time he told Kenyans whether or not he supports the BBI that followed a truce between President Kenyatta and Orange Democratic Movement leader Raila Odinga, after the prolonged elections season in 2017.
ALTERNATIVE
Mr Orengo claimed Dr Ruto is a “fence-sitter” who can’t be trusted with the country’s leadership.
He said it is strange that the DP supports the Constitution yet he opposed its adoption in 2010.
“Ruto must declare his stand on the BBI. Those he has lined up to oppose the document must also give us the alternative they’re proposing. Let them put their proposal on the table” the senator said in Rarieda, Siaya County.
Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo fired the first salvo when he asked the DP and his allies in government to pack up and leave if they are not ready to support the President on the BBI push.
He said Dr Ruto is contradicting the President, who has openly stated that he is supportive of the BBI.
“There is no turning back on the push for reforms, which we know will be ushered in through the BBI initiative. We will only listen to Raila and Uhuru, nobody else,” Mr Amollo said.
SPECULATION
Alego Usonga MP Samuel Atandi said ODM is waiting for the signal from the President and their party leader on the direction to take once the report is made public.
“If you have any problem with the document, wait to see its contents. Stop engaging in speculative debate,” he said, telling Rift Valley MPs to hold their horses.
Gem MP Elisha Odhiambo also asked the public for patience pending release of the report.
“We will have the opportunity to deliberate on the report and decide as a country on the way forward,” he said.
Mr Odhiambo further challenged the DP to declare his stand on the Mau evictions and appealed to the President not to relent in the push for the forest’s revival.
“The situation in Mau is desperate. The government must get everyone out of the forest and Uhuru must not listen to calls by some leaders from Rift Valley who are opposed to evictions,” he said
The MP said Rift Valley leaders should be ignored because they are only representing the selfish interests of a few Kenyans.
He and other leaders aired their views at Kunya village during the burial of Loice Anyango Oneko, who was the widow of freedom fighter and liberation hero the late Achieng’ Oneko.
DUE PROCESS
Siaya Woman Representative Christine Ombaka said the Embrace team will safeguard the peace that resulted from President Kenyatta and Mr Odinga’s handshake.
“We fully support BBI because it followed due process. The team consulted everyone in the country and there is no reason to fight over it this early,” she said.
“If there are areas you feel are not good, wait for the report. You will get the opportunity to present your views when the document is presented back to the public.”
Siaya Deputy Governor James Okumbe said counties support the BBI because it will strengthen devolution.
“The proposal, if implemented, will see the allocation to counties grow from 15 per cent to 35 per cent,” he said.
TUJU’S PLEA
Jubilee’s Secretary-General Raphael Tuju, who also attended the burial, asked politicians not to pre-empt when it come to the BBI and instead wait for the official release of the report.
“When it is finally released, we will deal with the recommendations therein. For now, let’s stop debating a document whose content we don’t have,” he said.
Mr Tuju received rare praise from the ODM MPs, Mr Orengo saying he had been very helpful and should carry on the same way. He did not elaborate.
CRITICISM
The call for the DP to declare his position comes in the wake of sustained criticism of the BBI by a section of Jubilee Party leaders believed to be allied to Dr Ruto.
Politicians in the Tangatanga faction, who are associated with Dr Ruto, have openly criticised the initiative and raised suspicion the intention.
In Nyamira County last week, at an event that the Deputy President attended, they rubbished the initiative, claiming the goal is to create special government positions for a few people.
“Let leaders be chosen by the people, not by a few elected parliamentarians. This thing called BBI … when it comes, we will interrogate it. We don’t want to create positions for some people,” said West Mugirango MP Vincent Kemosi.
And last week, some Central Kenya leaders gave conditions they said have to met before they can back the initiative.
GOVERNANCE
In Kisii, however the DP’s point man, Deputy Governor Joash Maangi, said he will support a parliamentary system if the BBI report so recommends.
“There is the narrative that those associated with DP Ruto are anti-BBI. No. On the presidential versus parliamentary system, I support Mr Odinga’s proposition for a parliamentary system 100 percent,” he said.
Mr Maangi believes the current presidential system of governance cannot insure citizens against the agony of post-election violence, ethnic balkanisation and plunder of public coffers.
“I support the handshake 100 per cent because it brought peace. Moreover, a pure presidential system, without a legitimate opposition, makes the President a dictator. The only way to keep the government in check is to have a legitimate opposition,” he said.
MINORITIES
Mr Maangi further said he will back a parliamentary system of governance because it is the only sure way for minority communities to have representatives in the highest offices in the country.
While using the DP’s perceived political nemesis in the area, Interior CS Fred Matiang’i, as a reference point, Mr Maangi further noted that it is possible for sons and daughters of minority tribes to be elected Prime Minister and President in the parliamentary arrangement.
“The entire Abagusii only have about 1.4 million voters, which is not enough to produce a President in the current constitutional dispensation. But in a parliamentary system, a strong person such as Mr Matiang’i may persuade MPs to vote him for premiership.”
He said Mt Kenya legislators are opposed to the proposal only because they have a rich vote basket.
REVENUE
Regarding national resources, Mr Maangi said he hopes the report recommends that the Senate allocate counties a 45 percent share.
“If the report presents good proposals such as an increased revenue share for counties, we as devolution practitioners will have no choice but to back it,” he said.
Mr Maangi’s unpredictability, however, leaves DP Ruto’s prospects in Gusii in disarray despite his persistence in finding foot soldiers to help him garner more support before the 2022 general election.
Political commentator Omondi Okumu is of the view that “the DP’s several visits to Gusii mean he has no good mobilisers to sell him in the area, which makes his chances in the region very slim.”