Former Water Minister and a long time Mwala legislator John Mutua Katuku has called for Ukambani leaders to rally their people in supporting the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report.
Katuku who was speaking in Wamunyu location over the weekend during the burial of Tabitha Mutinda the mother to Machakos County Chairman of Contractors Kilei Mutinda said there was need for leaders to back the new proposal as one way of addressing post-election conflicts that have become synonymous with every passing election cycle.
The former minister who is also Peoples Trust Party leader said the common mwananchi stood to gain immensely from the new BBI report in terms of development as more funds will now be channeled to counties from the current 15 per cent to the proposed 45 per cent.
“Leaders and the people of the Lower Eastern region should fully support the proposals contained in the Building Bridges Initiative as they are for the good of this country as far as our political future is concerned. Amendments being proposed in this document will not only help cure the incessant political acrimony we experience after every election but will also see at least 45 percent of national resources channeled to individual counties for development purposes,’’ he said.
Katuku also challenged elected leaders in Machakos to have a united front in choosing a presidential candidate come the next general election.
He said the current bickering being witnessed among leaders in the county may not augur well for the region and might cost the area dearly in the country’s political leadership.
“We need to forge a united front in our choice for the person who will carry the presidential flag from the Ukambani region regardless of the political party we ascribe to. Unless we do this, we can be sure our voice will never be heard in the national leadership after the 2022 general elections,” he cautioned.
Opposition leader Raila Odinga hinted Sunday at the possibility of unveiling the BBI report ‘any time’ this week shortly after attending a Sunday service at the United Ministries in Nairobi.
Raila who addressed the people at several stopovers in Kawangware and Kibra said every Kenyan will have a chance of scrutinizing the document before it can be subjected to a national referendum ahead of the next general elections.
He also took a swipe at those opposing the document which he helped craft with President Uhuru Kenyatta following the famous 2018 handshake saying it was out of order for anyone to rubbish the same without first having gone through it.
“Some have already started opposing it before even knowing the content. There are those who opposed the current Constitution saying 20 percent was not right. Now they are telling us there is nothing to change in the Constitution,” the ODM leader said.
By Samuel Maina
