With BBI report now out, let’s make the best choice

Finally, the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report has been made public, setting the stage for constitutional reforms.

On Mashujaa Day, President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga declared that the country had entered a constitutional moment. Now is that the moment. Kenyans have a chance to revisit the 2010 Constitution and make changes they so desire.

The BBI report has made proposals for critical changes in the Constitution. Triggering this is the desire to cure historical injustices that have persisted despite several legislative and policy interventions. Inter alia, the changes are aimed at dealing with equity and equality — ending generations of marginalisation and creating equal opportunities to enable citizens exploit and exercise their full potential.

Core to the report is reconfiguration of the governance structure, deepening devolution, reinforcing national values and ethics and redefining ways and means of service delivery.

The key highlight of the proposed reforms is reintroducing the position of Prime Minister with two deputies, appointing Cabinet ministers from members of the National Assembly and bringing back the post of Leader of Official Opposition, a slot to be reserved to the person who emerges second in the presidential election race.

Also, the report proposes expansion of the Legislature to create more opportunities for women in a bid to secure the elusive gender equality.

In continuing with the spirit of devolution, it proposes higher funding for counties, raising the minimum annual allocation from 15 per cent to 35 per cent of the latest audited revenue accounts.

For good measure, it proposes a fund for wards, anchored in law, thus seeking to achieve two things: One, push more cash to the grassroots and, two, use the lowest unit of governance as the focal point for development.

Issues being revisited include protection of privacy, under the Bill of Rights. This comes amid concern that widespread technological advancements pose the risk of exposing citizens badly, thus the need for protection of privacy and ensuring transparency in use of information obtained from them.

Expansion of government

But the focus will largely be on expansion of the governance structure, in both the Executive and Legislature, which comes at a price.

The country is reeling from the high cost of supporting a top-heavy leadership, and piling additional layers is bound to make matters worse. Arguably, that is one of the points of conversation.

The nation has to confront the dilemma of going for a heavily laden public sector with huge wage bill or retain the status quo and risk the pain of political turmoil that emanate from exclusionary leadership system.

Some of the legislative agenda are straightforward and have clear justification. For example, a plan to establish a health commission to manage health workers arises from the practical reality of the mess in the medical sector.

The current practice of health workers being managed by county governments has failed and the desire for changing that is inexorable. Counties do not have the capacity to manage these professionals and, whereas health is a devolved function, some of its components are better served by the national government.

Opinion is divided though. There is a counter-argument that some of the envisaged amendments can easily be dealt with under the current conditions and may not even require legislative actions as proposed.

In total, the report seeks amendments to some 14 chapters of the Constitution, out of 18. Some of these have far-reaching implications and will require a referendum while others are slight adjustments that can pass through Parliament.

It is those that require a referendum that are bound to spark heat, and that is where attention is required. 

Besides, the BBI Taskforce has prepared 12 Bills that require debate in Parliament to give force to the proposed legal changes. That means there is real work for the august House and, importantly, the challenge of rallying the legislators to a common cause to pass all of them.

As we have repeatedly stated, it is incumbent on the citizenry to take change and determine their future. It would be disastrous to allow politicians to run with the reform agenda.

Constitution is about the people and for the people. Let Kenyans determine their future by making the right choices about the Constitution.