Ford Kenya set for major makeover

Ford Kenya is set to undergo radical changes if members ratify the party’s revised constitution, the Nation learnt on Sunday.

According to the new document that is expected to be presented to members during the party’s General Council-cum-National Delegates Congress to be held at the Bomas of Kenya in two months’ time, the top position will be that of party leader and not chairman as is the case now.
The party leader will be assisted by two deputy leaders.

Mobilise resources

There will also be a chairman and four vice-chairmen, a secretary-general and deputy secretary-general, a treasurer and organising secretary and their deputies.

The party will also have 10 secretaries and their assistants for various activities.

The party’s elections will now be coordinated by the national director of elections together with an assistant and a deputy.

The two deputy leaders will be in charge of policy and resource mobilisation while the four vice-chairmen will be in charge of internal and external affairs, youth affairs, women and children affairs and the physically challenged.

The party leader shall chair all sittings of the National General Council and the NDC and any other party meetings, champion the party’s campaign to form the next government and lead the party in negotiations to form coalitions with other parties in consultation with the NEC and the party chairman. According to a letter signed by Labour minister John Munyes dated December 2, the party will hold a joint meeting of the GC and NDC at Bomas of Kenya in Nairobi on January 15, 2010.

Mr Munyes says that each party branch is supposed to send five delegates to the meeting namely, the chairman, secretary, organising secretary, women leader and youth leader.

The notice for the meeting has been dispatched to all party branch chairmen who are supposed to submit names of the five branch officials to attend the meeting to the party headquarters before December 21.

The Nation learnt that the Ford Kenya executive director, Mr Stephen Namusyule, had called for a NEC-cum-parliamentary group meeting on December 22, 2009 which is supposed to discuss the budget for the NDC meeting in January.

The agenda for the January meeting includes ratification and amendments of the proposed changes in the party constitution and when to hold grassroots elections.

However, it has emerged that a section of party members is opposed to holding of the GC and the NDC at the same time, saying that the party should hold its grassroots elections first.

MP Bifwoli Wakoli has said he was among those opposed to the GC and the NDC being held at the same time, saying those pushing for such an arrangement wanted to hijack the party leadership.

“We are not going to allow some people to use short-cuts to get into party leadership,” he said.