New push for third question in referendum

PHOTO | CORRESPONDENT Deputy President William Ruto addresses wananchi in Kutus town, Kirinyaga County, on August 18, 2013. He asked governors allied to the Jubilee Coalition to focus on development rather than a referendum.  NATION MEDIA GROUP

By NATION TEAM
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Some MPs now want the 290 constituencies to be the base of devolution if the country goes to a referendum to change the Constitution.

The move is aimed at wrestling control of devolution resources from governors.

The move by MPs Ayub Savula (Lugari), Jimmy Angwenyi (Kitutu Chache North) and Mithika Linturi (Igembe South) is meant to counter the push by governors for a referendum through which they are seeking to control 40 per cent of the Budget, up from the minimum 15 per cent prescribed in the Constitution.

On Sunday, Mr Savula said they want their proposed amendment considered alongside two others suggested by senators and governors respectively. Senators have been pushing for more powers to make them superior to MPs.

“There has been an attempt to cut the constituencies out of the devolution map,” Mr Savula said.

He said that MPs will be meeting to agree on the details of the proposed amendment to be taken to the referendum as a question and that the group will move around the country to collect signatures.

“We are setting up a committee to spearhead this campaign and we are confident to collect the required signatures to push our agenda,” Mr Savula said.

Efforts to get Mr Linturi and Mr Angwenyi were unsuccessful as they could not be reached on phone.

However, Suna East MP Junet Mohammed, who first introduced the idea in Parliament two weeks ago, distanced himself from the new campaign.

“I am not party to that idea by Savula and his group. I want it to be known that I fully support devolution,” he said.

COUNTY FUNDS

Governors are battling control more tax revenue but the government recently said they cannot control funds meant for roads despite an earlier agreement reached by the governors and Deputy President William Ruto.

On Sunday, the chairman of the Governors Council, Mr Isaac Rutto, said that the push for a referendum by the senators and governors should not be misunderstood.

“Ours is not political. We are pushing for this referendum for purposes of achieving full devolution so that County Governments can work,” he said in an interview with theNation.

Last week, Mr Ruto asked governors to abandon their calls for a referendum, saying the idea was being used as a bait by the opposition to frustrate the Jubilee government’s agenda.

And on Sunday, he said that devolution of resources to counties was not part of the opposition’s agenda.

Speaking at a fundraiser for construction of dormitories for St. Annie’s Kiamutugu Girls  Secondary School in Kirinyaga county, Mr Ruto said that while Jubilee had proposed  in to increase money for counties to 40 per cent, Cord had   not set any  figures in its manifesto.

“It is therefore hypocritical for Cord leadership  to claim  ownership of  the devolution agenda, and even  try  to stir up the political environment with calls for referendum  to ostensibly champion devolution when in the real sense they want to get into  power through the back door,” he said.

“The governors have Sh210 billion while members of Parliament  through the constituency development funds have Sh25 billion this year”.

He asked governors elected on a Jubilee ticket to concentrate on development in their counties instead of wasting valuable time planning for a referendum with the ruling coalition’s political rivals.

The push for a referendum has slowed down after four senators at the weekend that it should be held in 2017. However, the four — Stephen Sang (Nandi), John Munyes (Turkana) and nominated senators Zipporah  Kittony and Linnet  Nyakeriga — asked the government to increase budgetary allocation to counties.

Reports by Isaac Ongiri, Miraj Mohamud, Timothy Kemei and Tom Matoke