Take the noble BBI proposals through parliament route

One thing promoters and critics of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report agree on is that it contains some noble proposals, which if implemented will transform the lives of ordinary Kenyans.

But the two groups’ point of departure is legality of the process that came up with the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2020. Whereas the critics dismiss the process as illegal, and which was affirmed by the High Court when it dismissed the entire process as flawed, the promoters aver the process is legal and that is why they have moved to the Appeal Court to overturn the High Court ruling.   

But whatever the outcome in the Appeal Court, the High Court ruling dealt a major blow to the BBI process in the eyes of many Kenyans. As Famers Party, we believe it is time promoters of the Bill adopted an inclusive parliamentary system to save the Bill, legally and in court of public opinion.

At the moment, we are staring at the prospects of throwing the baby out with the bathwater by simply allowing an avoidable error to cause the elimination of something good. Or alternatively, we are facing a contested and divisive referendum if the Appeal Court overturns the High Court ruling.

But there are noble proposals in the BBI. They include the proposal for economic expansion by entrenching Article 43 on economic and social rights in political platforms and national policy. Another noble recommendation is using public resources for development and not bureaucracy by targeting a ratio or ceiling 70:30 for development versus recurrent expenditure.

The BBI also makes it easier for the youth to start businesses to economically empower themselves. It also aims at curbing the growing public perception of Kenya having a rigged system that rewards cronyism and corruption, as opposed to the productive and hardworking.

It recommends freeing Kenya from cartel capture which include; that public officers should not be in business with government; and that wealth declaration forms should be made public including a written narrative of how wealth above Sh50 million was acquired. It also calls for making Kenya a 100 per cent e-services nation by digitising all government services, processes, payment systems, and record keeping.

The BBI also strengthens devolution by increasing resources to the counties to 35 per cent of the last audited accounts. The report also projects a surge in entrepreneurship which will be provided for through training and macro- and microeconomic policies. Besides, it suggests a seven-year tax holiday for youth.

-The writer is the Farmers Party leader