Women leaders want BBI to address gender violence

Women leaders supporting the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) want gender and sexual violence addressed.

In their recommendations to ODM leader Raila Odinga read by Nairobi Speaker Beatrice Elachi, the politicians said women are the main victims of violence.

Elachi also called for inclusivity and full implementation of the gender rule.

Last month, the nomination of Betty Maina as Industrialisation CS cast a ray of hope for a gender-balanced Cabinet.

With Maina's nomination, the Cabinet now has seven women members.

But seven women in a 21-member Cabinet (excluding the President, Deputy President and AG) seems far off, compared to what other countries in the region have done.

Speaking in Kitui during the fourth BBI rally, the women politicians further appealed for the setting up of a Commission of Health and implementation of the Abuja Declaration, which states that African Union countries ought to set a target of allocating at least 15 per cent of their annual budget to improve health.

Host and Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu said BBI is the answer to inclusivity, which will improve representation, not just among women, but youth as well.

The women further want 45 per cent of the national budget to go to counties.

The BBI report seeks to increase resources to the 47 counties to at least 35 per cent of the devolved units’ equitable share of the revenue.

Currently, counties get not less than 15 per cent of the equitable share of revenue raised nationally by the national government.

The proposal is a big win for governors who have been pushing for more funds to go to the grassroots.

President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila have described devolution as being ‘largely successful’, but admitted that counties face a challenge in resource allocation.

The BBI report proposes that the amount of money sent to the counties should be determined by population numbers.

“When dividing revenue between counties, use a formula that focuses on ensuring services reach the actual settlements of people so that resources are not allocated on the basis of uninhabited landmass,” reads the abridged version of the BBI document.

On corruption, Elachi said more should be put in place to end the vice.

Flanked by women leaders who included Kisumu Woman Rep Rosa Buyu and Wajir's Fatuma Gedi, the Nairobi speaker added that anyone with corruption cases should not be allowed to lead.

The sentiments come in the backdrop of Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko's January 17 setback after the High Court declined to stop the hearing of a graft case filed against him.

In the case, Sonko is fighting the agency’s probe into whether he was involved in suspected irregular construction of Dandora Stadium at Sh350 million and suspected loss of Sh160 million in a garbage collection contract.

The agency is also probing Sonko on claims that he may have faked his self-declaration form in the run-up to 2017 General Election.