Retire quietly, Martha Karua tells President Uhuru Kenyatta

Narc-Kenya Party leader Martha Karua. [File, Standard]

Narc-Kenya Party leader Martha Karua has urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to proceed on retirement after the August 9 General Election, and allow his successor run the country without interference.

Karua, who spoke during her Party’s National Delegates Conference (NDC) at Ufungamano House in Nairobi on Friday, February 18, said President Kenyatta shouldn’t continue calling the shots in the next government.

Karua suggested there might have been a plan to introduce the prime minister position, which would be occupied by President Kenyatta upon handing over power after the August 9 polls. The plan, she says, isn’t possible with the current Constitution in place.

The failed BBI constitutional change push had sought to re-introduce the prime minister position. A verdict on the appeal filed by the State at the Supreme Court is expected later February.

“We’ve heard the Attorney-General being quoted in some reports saying there’s no constitutional obstacle blocking President Kenyatta from being appointed a prime minister in the subsequent government. That would be illegal. The ten-year term limit for sitting presidents was put in place to allow for new leadership after a given period,” Karua said.

“The term limit should be observed irrespective of the sitting president’s age. You could even be 40 years old, but when your term expires, you have to leave office.

“The first president to hand over power after his term expired was Daniel Moi in 2002, and then Mwai Kibaki in 2013. This year would be the third time a sitting president hands over power to his successor. And, this is because we have a constitutional term limit in place.

“The term limit allows other Kenyans the opportunity to lead the nation, and also gives other political parties and people of different social backgrounds the chance to steer the country,” she said.

President Kenyatta is on the record saying he doesn’t intend to stay in power longer than the constitutionally allowed period.

He, however, said he has the right to shape his succession so that he leaves power to a person he believes would continue his development agenda.