ANC leader: BBI report lacks roadmap to save our troubled economy
Amani National Congress (ANC) has dismissed the BBI report saying it lacks clear modalities on the redemption of the country’s economy .
Party leader, Musalia Mudavadi said the BBI has so many loopholes and failed to propose clear modalities on timelines, and how certain issues will be implemented.
He said, as a result, the document has left room for political wrangles “as already witnessed in the pull-and-push whether it should be left for Parliament to discuss and give a way forward, or be subjected for a popular initiative where Kenyans, decide on it.
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Some issues will require Parliament to look at, while others can be taken to Kenyans for debate and determination. But even before we get there, already politicians have jumped into conclusions polarising the society,” he added.
He singled out some issues in the BBI for praise, but punched numerous holes in the whole document for failing to address the state of the economy as the main challenge facing Kenyans currently.
“We thank members of the Taskforce for their individual and collective energies and thoughts which went into the document...especially on the national ethos, inclusivity, shared prosperity, safety and security which generate a lot of positive action if we’ll guided,” Musalia said at a hotel in Lavington, Nairobi.
He also singled out the proposal on reforms on Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and the entrenchment of devolution.
“Consequently, we applaud the Report. It has done well. Nevertheless, as a party, we firmly hold the view that the anchor on which all our hopes and aspirations must latch is a good economy and respect for the rule of law. On these two alone, the BBI has fallen too short,” he added.
Last week when accorded the opportunity to address dignitaries during the official launch of the BBI report at Bomas of Kenya, Musalia emphasised that leaders should strive to address the sorry state of the economy.
He warned Kenyans and leaders to avoid falling into the trap of thinking that the BBI report is about sharing of seats and top government positions.
“My understanding is that BBI is bigger than sharing of positions…And your excellency, the economy. What is ailing us? the economy,” said the ANC leader last Wednesday.
Flanked by most the party’s elected and nominated National and County Assemblies, Musalia said that most of the recommendations in the BBI report are found in existing legal and policy documents and frameworks.
The Taskforce
He said the BBI Taskforce failed to notice that, or might have observed, but that for some reason, did not find it worth.
For instance, he said, TJRC report, which has clear recommendations on how to deal with historical injustices in Kenya, has been gathering dust in Parliament shelves.
“What is the problem that stops us from utilising these many suggestions and recommendations on which we have expended a lot of taxpayers’ money? Why, for instance, have we failed to utilise the Kriegler Commission on elections; findings by Hon Ole Kaparo’s Report on skewed public appointments, Ndung’u Report on Land, etc?” he posed.
He said lack of respect for the rule of law has made it nearly impossible for implementers to pick and act on for so many years.
“The BBI failed to lead the country into a face-off with our past as a country. Our solution as a country lies in the genuine admission of the mistakes of our past leaders and of our own, forgive ourselves genuinely and agree to start a new, united, transparent, fair and progressive Kenya,” he said.
Musalia said the problem is not the law but Kenyans’ individual character as leaders and Kenyans.
