Any constitutional change must reflect the economic concerns of the people, Deputy President William Ruto has said.<\/p>\n
Speaking yesterday in Kandara, Murang\u2019a County, Dr Ruto emphasised that the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) must not be hijacked to fulfil the wishes of a few selfish individuals.\u201cThe BBI engagements will help the country move forward,\u201d said Ruto.\u201cWhat we are against is a few people hijacking the reform process for their own self interests.\u201dHe called on leaders to demonstrate discipline and be committed to serving the people.<\/p>\n
At the same time, Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen said Jubilee Party members would go to Meru on February 29 to engage the public on the BBI report.Mr Murkomen said leaders should concentrate on improving the livelihoods of the people they represent, and stop pushing for the creation of additional political slots.<\/p>\n
\u201cA conversation to unite Kenyans should be honest. It should be designed to address issues such as tea, coffee and milk prices. This is what we should tackle through constitutional reforms,\u201d said Murkomen. Murang\u2019a Woman Representative Sabina Chege said Mt Kenya leaders should be united as they approach constitutional reforms. \u201cI\u2019m happy that many leaders are supporting BBI.<\/p>\n
The support should be geared towards uniting our people,\u201d said Ms Chege.MPs present included host Alice Wahome, Rigathi Gachagua (Mathira), Ndindi Nyoro (Kiharu), Moses Kuria (Gatundu South) and Kimani Ichungw\u2019a (Kikuyu).They said they would support a farmers\u2019 initiative dubbed the Minimum Guaranteed Returns (MGR) that would save farmers from exploitation by middlemen.<\/p>\n
Mr Nyoro said he was working on a MGR Bill that will ensure farmers earn maximum profits from their harvests.\u201cSuch a Bill is what should be contained in the BBI. Farmers should be confident that their produce will reap good returns in the market,\u201d said Nyoro.Mr Gachagua said Mt Kenya residents want to know how BBI will ensure that their milk trades at Sh60 per litre, coffee at Sh150 per kilogramme, and tea at Sh100 a kilogramme.Mr Ichungw\u2019a said unemployment was a major problem facing the youth.<\/p>\n
The government, he said, should provide youth with a monthly stipend to help them pay for their upkeep as they look for jobs.Mr Kuria said leaders should learn from former President Daniel Arap Moi who mentored many successful politicians.\u201cIn Mt Kenya region there is a trend where upcoming politicians are harassed instead of being mentored,\u201dsaid Kuria.Energy Principal Secretary Andrew Njoroge and Kiambu County Assembly Speaker Stephen Ndichu were also present.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Any constitutional change must reflect the economic concerns of the people, Deputy President William Ruto has said. Speaking yesterday in Kandara, Murang\u2019a County, Dr Ruto emphasised that the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) must not be hijacked to fulfil the wishes of a few selfish individuals.\u201cThe BBI engagements will help the country move forward,\u201d said Ruto.\u201cWhat […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":2540,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,8,12],"tags":[235,1375,493],"class_list":["post-2539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-homepage-english","category-policy","tag-bbi","tag-constitutional-change","tag-dp-william-ruto"],"yoast_head":"\n