Constitutional reforms is not like changing a password

Constitutional reforms mean altering an existing system of governance or creating a new one. When the new constitution was promulgated in 2010, people thought it was going to be easy during the implementation stage.

Today, we are living the dream of those who framed the current constitution, and yet some people are saying that it is not working. That is why there is the BBI report, which proposes a three-tier government with 14 regional governments.

The other one is the Punguza Mizigo bill by Ekuru Aukot, which is proposing the reduction of MPs from the current 416 to 147, to address the issue of over-representation in parliament.

Nobody is entirely rejecting these reforms. I believe the framers and drafters have good intentions for the country. But, do you think Kenya is ready for another referendum or, in that case, a constitutional reform? In my opinion, I think we are not ready. Changing a constitution will disrupt the system of governance, operation of state agencies, allocation of funds, and the chain of command, among other things.

Changing the current constitution is not that simple. It is not like changing a password on your computer or Facebook account. It is a tedious process with so many unforeseen outcomes.

I think it is high time for Kenyan politicians to realize that change does not always bring progress.

Maybe these reforms are not making any difference. We might be remaining the same or moving backward even with the presence of these constitutional changes.

We started with provinces; then we came to counties. Then, maybe we go to a three-tier government, and later on, we go to the Punguza Mizigo government. After that, somebody else will come up with another form of government. Who knows.

These rapid changes need to stop, and as a country, we should decide to stick to one system of governance so we can achieve political stability and economic prosperity.