Why The Best Way To Deal With The Kibaki Administration Is To Vote “Yes” For The New Constitution

Most Kenyans who read this blog regularly are very busy people. They hardly have the time to go through some fancy detailed prose. So this post will be what writers call a list article. Easy to read because my reasons are clearly and numerically listed one by one.

1. The Draft Constitution is better than the current one. It seems that nobody is really disputing this fact. So why is there so much orange support and propaganda to the contrary. The answer is simple. Our politicians have turned this new constitution referendum into “the Kibaki succession referendum”. Vote Yes, and you are saying that Kibaki should continue and even choose a successor after that. Vote No and you are saying No to Kibaki and the Murungarus etc. But is this what it is really all about? The truth is that if we remain with the current constitution, the power remains exactly where it is now and genuine change becomes more difficult by the day. Have you noticed how quickly Presidfent Kibaki has turned into another Moi?
2. Very few people in the orange camp have actually read the draft constitution. Why read the document when there is a more exciting agenda? Namely to show President Kibaki, nay, to rudely remind him of where his immense powers really come from… from the people of course. But what price will Kenyans pay to prove a point?
3. The Draft constitution is actually “the rope that will hang” the Kibaki administration, come the next general elections. In the heat of the moment, few have realized that the draft constitution offers Kenyans a much better chance of getting their “revenge” and voting in the sort of government in the next general elections that we have desired all along. For example the draft constitution allows for independent candidates to stand for even the Presidency. In the past this “weapon” of you-can-not-stand-unless-you-are-nominated-by-a-registered-political-party has been used very effectively to shut out popular candidates. There are numerous other examples, just take the time to read the draft constitution.
4. So why is it that former President Moi is against the new constitution? While it is true that no opinion of a person as experienced as Moi should be taken lightly, the truth is that Moi is from the old school. And this is precisely what is wrong with leadership in Kenya today. We are still trying to use the same old tricks in a world that has not only changed too much, but one that continues to change at a rate that can only be described as “blinding speed.” Let all the wazees go home to rest. Let the baton of leadership be passed on to a new generation of younger Kenyans. But before this happens, let’s give the new generation of Kenyan leaders a new constitution to work with.
5. The draft constitution is actually the Ghai draft with changes to the Executive (Presidency), Devolution, Kadhi’s courts and a few other controversial issues. The spirit remains the same, the basic principles remain the same. We all loved the Ghai draft, why don’t we want to use it as the foundation to a new constitution? Is it because our favorite politicians do not like it? Surely since when did you start trusting a politician to tell you what to do? I love Raila Odinga but his agenda here is that he is out to prove that he is the ultimate king-maker. He’s out to prove that he yields the power to decide. He said Kibaki tosha and it was settled. Now he has said No to the new constitution. If he gets his way on November 21st, then he will also choose the next president of Kenya for us come the next general elections. Should he?
6. The main opposition to the draft constitution consists of the same Kanu elements we fought so hard to remove from power. What are they really scared of in the new constitution? My hunch is that the answer lies in the increased power the draft constitution gives to the people. Some of the leading lights in Kanu have benefited in the past from policies that oppressed the people. Some of them have grown rich on land grabbed from the people who are about to have a bigger voice than they have ever had in the history of Kenya.
7. Everybody says that the district governments in the draft constitution will be as corrupt as the current local governments have proved to be. This is an assumption with no genuine basis. The current local government structure and urban councils are very different from the proposed district governments in the new constitution. The new district governments will consist of representations from the grassroots, while a corrupt person will always be corrupt, the motivation of leaders in district governments will be very different.

Between now and the referendum, this blog will analyze key sections of the constitution for you on a regular basis.

For now, I have an urgent task at hand. All these months I’ve been in the orange camp, I’ve missed them bananas and I need to have one right now. So Until next time, please allow me…