MBUGUA DEFECTS

Raila’s ‘Yes’ team got a boost following the defection of Kamukunji MP Simon Mbugua from the Agriculture Minister William Ruto-led ‘No’ camp.

"I discovered after declaring my opposition to the draft that the bus I had boarded was not leading to the desired destination. I have alighted and I will stand with the PM to the end," said Mbugua who was attending the official launch of electronic voter registration in Lang’ata on Monday.

Our leader

"I will be with you to the end. Wherever you will go I will be with you as our leader," declared Mbugua.

The MP said Kenyans wanted a new constitution, which they have waited for many years and that anybody out to divert their determination should be ignored.

Mbugua was one of the 26 MPs who addressed a press conference at Parliament Buildings recently, where they declared their opposition to the draft.

Prime Minister Raila Odinga accused the leading proponents of the ‘No’ vote of hypocrisy, saying they had questionable track records.

The PM, without naming names, said the ‘No’ team had leaders who grabbed huge public land and forests, which they later attempted to sell to the Government and that they were now against the draft because it would take away their ill-gotten parcels.

"Baadhi ya wale watu wako kwa ile camp ingine ni wanafiki. Waliiba misitu ya serikali kule Ngong na baaadaye wakajaribu kuuzia serikari. Na kesi zao bado ziko kotini (Some of those opposing the draft are hypocrites. They grabbed part of Ngong Forest and later attempted to sell the same to Government and their cases are pending in court," said the PM.

He said others in the opposing camp grabbed part of Mau Forest and feared losing the parcels if the new constitution goes through.

The PM said the new constitution would ensure all Kenyans get land and that no single Kenyan will be allowed to poses huge chucks, which were never used while millions remain landless.

He warned the ‘No’ campaigners against misinterpreting the clauses they had singled out for their own selfish ends.

"Even if it will mean the Government taking away part of the idle land and giving it to the landless, we will do that," said the PM, adding it was unacceptable for some individuals to own huge chucks of land with leases of 999 years while thousands had none.

Raila Said: "This approach will see some of us being branded communists, but even if that will be the case we will want to see idle land put into use by desperate Kenyans."

The Lang’ata MP claimed leaders opposing the draft were misleading Kenyans that the new constitution would take away land administration rights from the communities and bestow them on the National Land Commission.

He told a crowd in his constituency that contrary to the misleading interpretation by the ‘No’ supporters, the commission would be a better option as compared to the current situation where only the President and the Commissioner of Lands had express authority to allocate land.