President William Ruto's United Democratic Alliance party has distanced itself from Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei's Bill to extend the term limits of the president and other elected leaders.
The ruling party, already faced with division among its top officials over the decision to impeach Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua , fears running into the risk of public backlash by the proposal to extend the term of office of the president and other elected leaders from five to seven years.
In a letter signed by the UDA Secretary-General Omar Hassan, the party said it had “learnt with great concern and disappointment that one of the party's elected leaders has tabled a bill which seeks to alter the constitutional term limits set for holders of elective offices by extending them”
The masterminds and sponsors of the Bill, Mr Hassan said, are preoccupied with sensational distractions and legislative mischief, and have not engaged in sufficient reflection with regard to the historical origins, institutional basis and political necessity of term limits.
But UDA, Mr Omar said, remembers the lessons of our nation's history and honours the long struggle of the people of Kenya for constitutional change.
“The party therefore disassociates itself from the repugnant and backward Bill and calls any of its rank and file who leads, supports or is, in any manner whatsoever, involved with it, to order,” Mr Omar said.
“The bill is incompatible with our policy and aspirations. This juvenile political experimentation and delinquent affront to our constitutional values must now be crushed to a halt!”
The Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which is currently undergoing public participation, seeks to extend the tenure of all elected leaders from the current five years to seven years.
The Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2024, also seeks to create the office of Prime Minister, who will be appointed by the President from among members of the party or coalition of majority parties in Parliament and will serve at the pleasure of the President, is currently undergoing public participation.
The Prime Minister will be the head of government, responsible for the day-to-day administration of the government and accountable to Parliament.
The Bill was first read in the Senate on September 26, 2024, before being referred to the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee for consideration.
"The Bill proposes to amend Article 136 of the Constitution, which provides for the election of the President, to increase the term of office of the President from five years to seven years," the Bill states.
The Bill also seeks to amend sections 101, 177 and 180 of the Constitution to extend the terms of MPs, Senators, MCAs and Governors to seven years.
The latest proposal follows another in November 2022, when Fafi MP Salah Yakub proposed the removal of presidential term limits.
In the outrageous proposal, the UDA MP wanted to replace two five-year term limits with an age limit of 75. But the proposal failed. The Constitution currently limits the President to a maximum of two five-year terms.
Senator Cherargei's bill also seeks to increase the powers of the Senate by giving it the exclusive mandate to vet some state officials.
Specifically, the Bill amends sections 152, 156, 157, 166, 215, 228, 229, 245 and 250 of the Constitution to share the responsibility of approving the appointment of various state officers between the Senate and the National Assembly.
The Senate, according to the bill, will screen and approve for appointment of Cabinet secretaries, the attorney-general, the director of public prosecutions, the chief justice and judges.
The House will also vet the chairperson of the Revenue Allocation Commission, the Controller of Budget, the Auditor General, members of the Public Service Commission, the Inspector General of Police and members of constitutional commissions. Currently, state officials are vetted by the National Assembly.
The proposal retains the National Assembly's mandate to vet and approve nominees for High Commissioner, Ambassador and diplomatic and consular representatives.
The bill provides for the Senate to be the forum for filing petitions for the removal of a member of a constitutional commission or holder of an independent office, as opposed to the National Assembly as is currently provided.
It also proposes to amend Article 58 of the Constitution to provide for the involvement of the Senate and the National Assembly in approving the extension of a state of emergency.
The Bill provides that both Houses of Parliament shall approve the deployment of the Kenya Defence Forces in any part of the country. Under the current provision, the National Assembly approves such deployment.
