This archive report was first published on 18 December 2019.
Published on December 18, 2019, the Building Bridges Initiative report proposed a ceremonial prime minister, but the Orange Democratic Movement has now called for a powerful PM.
The ODM's fresh demands are expected to attract opposition from Jubilee Party leaders, who had earlier shown lukewarm support for BBI before changing tune to support the report.
At a closed-door meeting, ODM leaders suggested that a powerful premier should be appointed from Parliament, with one of the two deputy PMs to be less than 45 years old to win youth support.
Legislators expressed dissatisfaction with the proposal, insisting that they wanted a PM with executive powers, saying, “We want someone with power. This one who is an appointee of the President can be kicked out any time,” said an MP from Migori County.
ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna clarified that the party's proposal does not belong to the party, stating, “As a party we are cognisant of the fact that this process is a consultative give-and-take and that no party or individual can bulldoze the discussion or indeed the outcome.”
