Kibaki tells off councillors at ‘Yes’ meeting

By Alex Ndegwa and Athman Amran

The 4,500 civic leaders invited to Nairobi by President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga sprung a surprise when they laid down conditions to be met by the Government before supporting the Proposed Constitution’s ‘Yes’ campaign.

What was expected to be a session of extolling the good values in the draft almost turned chaotic as the civic leaders demanded better pay.

They kept shouting ‘pesa’ (pay rise) and interrupted almost every speaker at the meeting convened at Kenyatta International Conference Centre. Angered by their demands, President Kibaki reprimanded them for engaging in idle talk. Raila did not attend the meeting.

President Kibaki declared time for idle talk falsehoods on the Proposed Constitution that Kenyans were wise enough to see through their schemes.

"A lot of fallacies are being peddled, particularly in relation to county governments. Let me tell detractors that time has run out for idle talk because Kenyans want genuine change," Kibaki said.

The meeting, summoned to rally grassroots support for the ‘Yes’ team ahead of today’s ‘Yes’ campaign launch at Uhuru Park by the President and Prime Minister on Saturday, was marred by incessant heckling.

Not even a Sh5,000 pay rise announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Local Government Minister Musalia Mudavadi could soften the hearts of the civic leaders, whose fare to the city was footed by taxpayers.

They were hostile to talk on the Proposed Constitution, forcing cancellation of scheduled addresses by chairman of the Committee of Experts Nzamba Kitonga and Parliamentary Select Committee chairman Mohammed Abdikadir.

And when the President rose to address them, they broke into chants of ‘Pesa! Pesa!’ prompting him to give them a tongue-lashing before reading his official speech.

He told them engaging in a shouting-match was unhelpful because it could not help them achieve whatever they were agitating for.

Kibaki, who appeared angry, told the civic leaders they were Kenyans and constitutional debate was not an issue that could tolerate bullying and name-calling.

He said millions of copies of the Proposed Constitution are being distributed so that Kenyans can make up their minds and no one will be coerced. "Don’t imagine you can bully anybody. Neither can we say I don’t want you to talk. I think that is absolutely bure kabisa (useless) for you to do that."

The President told them that the final decision over the Proposed Constitution will come from a majority of voters and reminded them that he had personally made a decision to support the document.

As the President left the KICC Plenary Hall accompanied by Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka, chants of ‘Yes! and ‘No!’ rent the air.

As the dignitaries left, it was announced after the break the participants would delve into the Proposed Constitution but some of the civic leaders immediately left KICC grounds.

Kalonzo said the referendum campaigns should not divide the country and hoped energy would radiate from today’s Uhuru Park meeting.

Burden of debt

Earlier Mudavadi told the civic leaders the 40-60 per cent pay increment proposed in the collective bargaining agreement had extremely serious financial implications on local authorities, most of which are sagging with the burden of debt.

He wondered how local authorities saddled with Sh13 billion debt would meet the additional cost.

"How on earth are councils supposed to generate the revenue to take up this burden?" he posed.

The Association of Local Government Authorities of Kenya (Algak) chairman Taraiya ole Kores had complained the proposal to have councillors paid through the consolidated fund had been rejected by the Cabinet. He said it was unfair for the Government to only turn to councillors when in need of their help.

Curiously, a section of civic leaders had met MPs leading opposition to the Proposed Constitution on the eve of the meeting with the President.

Agriculture Minister William Ruto, who alongside two fellow ministers have defied the Cabinet’s collective resolve to support ‘Yes’ campaign, met some councillors at Bomas of Kenya.

MPs Cyrus Jirongo (Lugari) and Kiema Kilonzo (Mutito) on Friday separately met other councillors in Nairobi’s 680 and City Cabanas hotels respectively.

In his official address, the President asked the civic leaders to be ambassadors of truth and urged them to let history remember them as agents of change. The President stressed that the challenging two-decade search for a new constitution had approached the final lap and the country was on the threshold of a new dawn.

He extolled the benefits of the Proposed Constitution, saying it provided for devolved, autonomous, and sustainable local authorities.

The two-tier system of Government would empower counties and ensure power, resources and management is in the hands of the people, he said.