Kandara Member of Parliament Alice Wahome has asked politicians not to concentrate on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) debate at the expense of the country’s unity and development.
Addressing a media conference at a Malindi hotel on Thursday, Wahome said the BBI debate should be shelved untill after the 2022 General Elections to pave way for economic development and for democracy to thrive.
She claimed that the BBI report was being used by some politicians to settle political scores, and that instead of the report unifying the country as was envisaged, Kenyans were being driven farther apart.
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Wahome, who is the chairperson of the Inua Mama political outfit allied to Deputy President William Ruto, said talk to the effect that President Uhuru Kenyatta would not retire from politics after the 2022 elections were not helpful to the country.
She took issue with suggestions made by former Jubilee Party Vice-Chairman David Murathe, Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) Secretary-General Francis Atwoli and nominated senator Beth Mugo to the effect that President Kenyatta, “was going nowhere after 2022.”
She said President Kenyatta was constitutionally required to retire after serving his two terms as Head of State and Government and wondered why the leaders were giving out predictions that are not founded in law.
“These people could be knowing what many of us do not know because they are very close to the President,” Ms. Wahome said.
''Even though they may be expressing their opinions, I think his Excellency the President, whom we respect very much should come clear on the issues they are raising,” she said.
She said unless the BBI debate is abandoned, Kenya could return to the 1992 constitutional changes, whose ambiguity made then President Daniel arap Moi serve another two terms.
She claimed that opposition leader Raila Odinga was keen to use his handshake with President Kenyatta to vie for the Prime Minister’s position.
“To stop these speculations and to enable us to concentrate on development, the BBI debate should be abandoned till after the 2022 elections,” she reiterated.
