Duale wants MPs to elect President but won't back referendum

National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale on Monday insisted that the country should adopt a parliamentary system of government in line with the Bomas Draft proposals.

That, he said, was the only way to address the cycle of tension and bloodletting that accompanies every general election.

However, he said he would not support plans for a referendum to amend the current structure.

In an interview with the Nation, Mr Duale suggested that instead of a referendum, the decision on the system of governance to be adopted should be put to Kenyans during the 2022 elections to reduce costs.

DIVISION

The 2010 Constitution stipulates that to change the structure of the executive, a referendum must be held.

“I cannot advocate for a referendum because it will lead to divisive campaigns that will derail President Kenyatta’s legacy projects,” he said in his office.

He argued that it is easier for politicians to come to a consensus so that the matter is settled as a question in the 2022 General Election.

“It will be cheaper and safer to develop consensus on the issue and make it easy for the President to complete and deliver on his promises to the people,” he said.

TYRANNY

Mr Duale also told off leaders from the Mt Kenya region for supporting the tyranny of numbers, which, he said, had marginalised minority communities.

A group of 39 legislators from the Mt Kenya region last Thursday threatened to reject the proposals by the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) team if they do not address “injustices in representation” in the region.

They complained that the communities from the region are underrepresented at all levels compared to the population and number of voters in the region.

“When we talk about inclusivity, it must be reflected even in representation in Parliament and other spheres. We must have the correct number of seats in Parliament that represent our population,” the leaders said in a statement read by Ndaragwa MP Jeremiah Kioni.

'BIG FIVE'

But Mr Duale scoffed at the call, saying, the Constitution defines Kenya in terms of land mass and population. He added that the tyranny of the big five tribes had disadvantaged the communities in the north of the country.

“If they insist on their one-man one-vote clarion call, the people of northern Kenya will also demand one-kilometre one-vote because leadership is also about how one can reach his people.”

Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria warned that Mr Duale’s campaign for the BBI is a ploy to poison the atmosphere for a sober debate on the report when it is made public.

“Mr Duale is throwing a spanner in the works,” Mr Kuria said during a press conference at the Serena Hotel in Nairobi yesterday.

He dismissed the parliamentary system of governance as dangerous to Kenya’s young democracy.

“There is nothing wrong with a parliamentary system as long as the equity of the vote is protected. But I will never agree to have the person who wields executive authority in this country elected by Parliament,” he asserted.

“If that ever happens, then the stories of MPs receiving Sh10,000 in the toilet will be rampant. It will be sh---y stuff,” he added.