RUTO SUBTLY ATTACKS UHURU AND RAILA

Deputy President William Ruto taken a slight at President Uhuru Kenyatta and his handshake counterpart Raila Odinga, accusing them of attempting to change the Constitution to fit their personal agenda.

Ruto, in a veiled attack without mentioning names, said some leaders are trying to forcefully incorporate their agenda to the Constitution through a referendum.

“Our friends believe that the Constitution and institutions created by the Constitution and the law should facilitate those in power to drive their agenda,” Ruto said.

“… and if their agenda is in conflict with the Constitution, they believe the Constitution should be changed.”

He spoke on Thursday when he hosted political, religious and community leaders from Kiambu at his Karen official residence.

Ruto reiterated that the power given to the leaders by Kenyans should be in accordance to the Constitution.

“If the pursuit of those in power is in conflict with the constitution, it is not the constitution to be changed. It is what they are pursuing that should be changed to be in line with the constitution,” he said.

This comes weeks after the ruling by the High Court on the Constitutional Amendment Bill.

In a landmark judgment, a five-judge High Court bench led by Justice Joel Ngugi scuttled the BBI process, terming the entire process to amend the Constitution illegal, null and void.

The judges cited about 20 grounds for nullification of the process, including a declaration that the BBI task force that engineered the law change is an illegal entity.

They said, for instance, Uhuru made a fatal legal mistake in attempting to change the Constitution through a popular initiative, an avenue available only to ordinary Kenyans.

The judges also ruled that IEBC lacked quorum as stipulated in law for purposes of carrying out referendum preparations, including verification of signatures.

Though the promoters of the bill have vowed to appeal the ruling, some lawyers argued that it would be a miracle for the Court of Appeal to overturn all the grounds cited by the High Court.

“The chances of success at the Court of Appeal are nil. The reason is simple. For the referendum to happen, the government will have to succeed in overturning all the 20 grounds,” said lawyer Joel Kimutai Bosek.

By The Star