NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 16 – Religious leaders under the umbrella of the Dialogue Reference Group have expressed support for Constitutional amendments proposed by President William Ruto that if implemented will see the formation of the office of the Official Opposition.
Speaking during the closure of The Third National Dialogue Conference held at Ufungamano House in Limuru the clerics have reiterated the importance of a strong opposition in keeping the government in check.
“We have taken note of the ongoing debate in the country and reiterate our position that the country requires dignified opposition as a measure of promoting accountability. ” Read a statement by the leaders.
The religious leaders however want public participation to be carried out before constitutional amendments are implemented.
They have called on President Ruto to form a taskforce to oversee the process of amendment and collect public opinion warning that alienating the masses from such a process may lead to the recommendations suffering the same fate as the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) that was halted by the Supreme Court.
“We recommend the president constitute a multisectoral taskforce to undertake an objective review of the implementation of the constitution. The principle of a people driven constitution review process must be maintained at all times. ” They added.
The leaders have raised concern over the increased number of high profile cases that have been recently dropped by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) saying it has eroded public trust in the office.
“The public confession by the D.P.P that he was influenced by the previous regime to frame people through court cases means the office has lost independence and can no longer be trusted to not be influenced by the current regime to similarly frame other people,” they said.
They want DPP Nordin Haji to introspect and take decisive action to restore public trust in him and his office.
On the debate surrounding the importation of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) ; the clerics want the decision suspended until adequate public participation is conducted.
The Cabinet in a meeting chaired by President William Ruto had lifted a 10 year moratorium on importation of GMO as a measure to tackle famine in the country.
