Johannesburg – Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga is working for constitutional amendments to see through the nine-point agenda he agreed on with President Uhuru Kenyatta two months ago.
Odinga, the leader of the opposition coalition, the National Super Alliance, on Tuesday rallied his Orange Democratic Movement party to push for a restructure of the executive and for the introduction of a three-tier system of governance, Kenya’s Daily nation reported on Wednesday.
To this end a series of public events will be organised across the country to outline the terms of the March 9 meeting, commonly referred to as The Handshake, to Kenyans.
“Addressing some of these issues may require changes to some of our laws and even amendments to the constitution,” Odinga said during a party meeting in Gilgil.
“When that time comes, we must be bold enough to pick up the challenge as a matter of duty to the nation.”
His comments are likely to be interpreted as controversial by President Uhuru Kenyatta’s ruling Jubilee Party and spike political tensions as deputy president William Ruto and his allies are opposed to any constitutional amendments ahead of 2022 polls.
Odinga argues that under a parliamentary system, the power in the national executive is exercised by ministers drawn from the majority party in the national assembly.
Ruto’s camp counters that any proposal to change the constitution will take the country back to another round of political campaigns, to the detriment of peace and Jubilee Party’s development agenda.
African News Agency/ANA
