This archive report was first published on 2 December 2019.
On December 2, 2019, a heated debate erupted in Kenya's National Assembly over the implementation of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report.
Members of Parliament from Western Kenya, allied to Deputy President William Ruto, expressed their discontent with National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi's decision to dismiss the implementation of the BBI report through parliament.
Speaking at different venues, the lawmakers questioned the rationale of spending billions of taxpayers' money on a referendum to implement the BBI report, which was made public the previous week.
Trans Nzoia County women representative Janet Nangabo and Endebbes MP Robert Pokose faulted Muturi for taking sides on the matter, stating that Kenyans would be the biggest losers if the recommendations were not adopted.
Similar sentiments were echoed in Kakamega, where Ikolomani MP Bernard Shinali and his Lurambi counterpart Titus Khamala called for the implementation of the proposals through the most prudent way.
Kenya National Union of Teachers Secretary General Wilson Sossion, a nominated MP, also weighed in on the matter, urging teachers to embrace the building bridges initiative, which he believed would help heal the country from ethical divisions.
