ANC wants contentious issues in BBI resolved in Naivasha meeting
Lugari MP Ayub Savula.
The Amani National Congress (ANC) party has highlighted several issues in the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report that it wants addressed before its adoption.
Speaking Sunday on the side-lines of the ongoing meeting at a Naivasha hotel, Lugari MP Ayub Savula cited several contentious issues that the party wants resolved at the meeting.
Key among them is the appointment of a Judiciary Ombudsman by the executive which he said will be interfering with the principal of separation of powers between the Judiciary and the executive.
“We hired a team of lawyers who looked at the document and took us through the details,” pointed out Mr Savula.
Others issues that the party will be raising include the limiting of the powers of the Senate, which it says will dilute the envisaged gains of devolution.
“We looked at the clause that says Members of Parliament may be appointed Cabinet Ministers. The word is ‘should’ and not ‘may’ as outlined in the clause,” disclosed the MP.
Ministers
The party, he added, wants the ministers appointed from among elected leaders, terming the current trend of appointing the Cabinet from specialists as having failed to yield the desired results.
“The technocrats are not in touch with the people at the grassroots level and elected leaders are best placed to address their issues as CSs,” added Mr Savula.
The party, which is led by Mr Musalia Mudavadi, is also concerned about the distribution of positions of a prime minister and two deputy premiers, questioning the rationale of them coming from the majority party.
“If they come from the majority party, where is the fair distribution of positions if we are serious about addressing the issue of winner takes all malady?” posed the legislator.
Open discussion
Speaking during the official opening ceremony of the Naivasha meeting, National Assembly Minority Leader John Mbadi called on the members present to have a candid discussion about the proposed document.
“Let us be have an open discussion about the document. Each of you should feel free to make contributions to enable us have a consensus,” he told participants.
Senate Majority Leader Samuel Poghisio acknowledged that there might be a few issues in the BBI report which they will look into and streamline.
“We are here to look at issues that will help us move the BBI forward and discuss the contentious issues that may halt the process,” he stated.
He disclosed that the reason they are seeking consensus is because of a “few hardliners,” but said he is optimistic that the elected leaders will reach a consensus.
But Embakasi East MP Babu Owino hailed the document, saying it should be passed with minimal changes.
Speaking earlier, National Assembly Majority Leader Amos Kimunya indicated that all MPs had been invited for the retreat. But some denied having been called to the meeting.
Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara, in a telephone interview, denied have been invited.
“It is not true. Ask him what it means.”
However, several MPs continued to troop to the meeting, with talks expected to be concluded Monday.
