On 25th October 2020, the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Report was officially launched to the public at the Bomas of Kenya. The launch of the report comes nearly a year after the first draft was unveiled at the same venue in November 2019, after which the task force team retreated to collect views of Kenyans to be included in the final report. The road map for the BBI is that there will be implementation committee that will tasked to actualize the report and identify which bills should be done first through constitutional amendment, Legislation and administrative policy. The main proposals of the BBI are; expanding the structure of governance by creating the office of prime minister and his two deputies. Increasing the National Assembly members from 349 to 360. Senators to shoot up from the current 67 to 94.
Comment:
The BBI report is a brain child of the ‘golden handshake’ between President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. Since the report of the steering committee on the BBI was released, there has been heated debate on whether proposals in the document will make life tougher or better for Kenyans. Apart from that, while the President seems to rallying Kenyans to support the initiative, his Deputy William Ruto has been traversing the country, accompanied by his loyalists criticizing the agenda and campaigning for 2020 election with his ‘Hustler Narrative’. In the last election campaign they were both roaming the country selling their narrative ‘Tuko Pamoja’ but just two years down the line they criticize each other polarizing the country. Likewise, Raila Odinga, who was then fiery rival for Uhuru, and after putting a country into a standstill and he now calls Uhuru a brother. Indeed this shows that in Democratic politics there are no permanent enemies nor permanent friends but permanent interests.
As for proposals of expanding the system of governance, it shows clearly that the political expediency will be the only beneficiary in the big government and not the common man. Notably the current Kenyan MPs remain among the highest-paid legislators in the world, beating even their counterparts in advanced economies. Definitely the common man will be milked to the highest extent to feed the Big Government. This is a real state of self-interest politics of Democracy which is ever becoming the most lucrative business of the politicians. No matter how big the government is, the welfare of the ordinary citizens remain a mirage in Democracy. The really story of those rallying behind the BBI is the same story of those who oppose it.They both struggle for power and nothing else.
The BBI lists many problems, but fails to unfold the prime source of all problems. The biggest challenge facing the country is its bounding to the rotten system of Capitalism. Therefore nothing proposed seems likely to seriously change that situation. Additionally the architects of the BBI will not solve the problems since themselves are the schemers of the problems their situation is a like an Arab parable which goes by saying “How do I trust you and this is the effect your axe?”
Kenya and the world at large needs a profound ideology of Islam, which has a strong creed that produces laws of Allah – the Creator of the man, universe and life. Upon its foundation the Government is established, economic and social systems are founded. Furthermore, upon through this creed, people are bonded together to be a unified nation all being the servants of Allah (swt). This is how Islam for centuries under the Khilafah (Caliphate) produced the real politicians pious who had true political will that made them to bring political, economic and social stability. We certainly believe that God willing, the Khilafah will come very soon leading the world into true politics that will usher truth and justice for the whole world.
Shabani Mwalimu
Media Representative of Hizb ut Tahrir in Kenya