Raila threatens to oppose constitutional changes to create official opposition post
Raila threatens to oppose constitutional changes seeking to create the position of leader of the official opposition
Raila threatens to oppose constitutional changes seeking to create the position of leader of the official opposition.
Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga has threatened to oppose a proposed law establishing the office of the leader of the official opposition if it is drafted to dictate terms for holding the government accountable.
Raila Odinga, through his spokesman Denis Onyango, told the Sunday Nation that the coalition was also waiting to see the contents of the Bill before dealing with it, but warned that if it violated the Constitution, it would be dealt with accordingly.
Speaking for the first time about a proposal to amend the Constitution to create the office of the leader of the opposition, and a day after President William Ruto’s surprise letter to Parliament supporting the plan, Mr. Odinga said they are waiting for the legislative proposal’s details.
“We are waiting for the Bill whenever and wherever it comes from so that we deal with it. We, however, do not anticipate a Bill stipulating when, where, and how the government can be opposed and by who,” Mr. Odinga said.
“Such a prescription would be unprecedented. We will likely take it as a new affront to the Constitution and will be responded to as such.”
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This comes as Ruto’s letter calling for an amendment to the Constitution to establish the office of the leader of the opposition, among other things, continued to draw mixed reactions.
The proposal for the creation of the office of the official opposition leader mirrors the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) that was mooted by former President Uhuru Kenyatta and Mr. Odinga, which was, however, stopped by the courts over the legality of the process.
According to some of the initial proposals being considered for the Bill, but which have yet to be agreed on, the leader of the official opposition will be allowed to identify and appoint “such staff as shall be necessary for the execution of the said office, whose remuneration, benefits and allowances shall be drawn from the Exchequer subject to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission”.
The proposals also seek to amend Article 260 of the Constitution to include the office of the leader of opposition under the category of ‘state office’. The Azimio la Umoja team proposes that the office have “all such powers and discretion necessary to solicit and mobilize for funding from all sources, including donor funding, to supplement its budgetary allocations to finance its various activities”.
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