Constitution amendment good for Ruto: Salat

Kanu Secretary-General Nick Salat has called on the Deputy President William Ruto to support constitutional amendments, saying they would work for his presidential ambitions .

Mr Ruto has been vocal in opposing the proposed constitutional amendments targeting the structure of the Executive and layers of devolved government.

The Deputy President, who led the NO side in 2010 referendum campaigns, has become the loudest opponent of the proposed changes, while ODM leader Raila Odinga, who powerfully pitched for the Yes vote then, has assumed the face of amendments brigade.

“Devolution has  had a positive impact on service delivery perceptions of Kenyans. But it has come with a huge wage bill sinking the country into trillions in debts. The fear of electoral violence over a presidential vote converted Kenya into a virtual military state in 2017. Resources devoted to security arrangements made the elections expensive. If amendments can save us all this anxiety, it is a good thing even for DP’s succession  ambitions,” Mr Salat said.

He added that the DP should champion the possibility of staggering the many polls, “than crowding  six elections on one day to make campaigns less tedious”.

Asked if it was politically prudent to stuff  a referendum, a national census, a boundaries review and a succession election into the same electoral cycle, former Gem MP Jakoyo Midiwo said President Uhuru and Mr Odinga, whose handshake deal in March has left more political questions than answers, owed it to Kenyans to harness their combined political  capital to sort out difficult political issues.