Religious Leaders drawn from the National Council of Churches of Kenya, (NCCK) the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops, (KCCB) and the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims, convened the 4th National Dialogue Conference at Ufungamano House over the last two days to review the NADCO report.
The goal of the 4th National Dialogue Conference was to review the report presented to Parliament by the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) as well as the attendant Parliamentary Bills. The delegates from across the country were inspired by the words of the National Anthem.
This prayer is in tandem with the assertion in the Preamble of the Constitution of Kenya
2010 which states recognizing the aspiration of all Kenyans for a government based on the essential values of human rights, equality, freedom, democracy, social justice and
the rule of law.
The following are the recommendations made from the conference;
1. Mourning the Devastation of Floods
The delegates in the National Dialogue Conference are deeply saddened by the deaths of more than 200 Kenyans occasioned by the ongoing rains and floods. The lives of
hundreds of thousands of Kenyans have been destroyed. We mourn with all the bereaved.
We continue to pray for all the affected families for quick recovery. Our places of worship across the country are open at all times to house and support all who have been displaced. We are also mobilizing worshippers in our congregations to collect relief materials to share with the affected families.
2.End the Doctors’ Strike
Also deeply saddening all Kenyans are the deaths and massive suffering arising from the ongoing strike by doctors and other medical workers. We call upon the national and county governments, as well as the medical workers, to engage in genuine and meaningful dialogue to bring the suffering of Kenyans to an end. It is painful for Kenyans to watch their loved ones die from easily treatable conditions.We restate that the religious leaders are ready and willing to mediate in the dialogue process.
3. Urgently Constitute the IEBC
As provided for in the Constitution of Kenya, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries
Commission (IEBC) is the only body mandated to manage elections. The Constitution does not anticipate a situation where the country is without a capacity to constitute its democratic organs. It is therefore a strong breach of the Constitution that Kenya has now gone for 16 months without a properly constituted Commission.
Already, there are two constituencies, Banissa and Lagdera, and four wards, Nyamaiwa,
Kisa East, Lakezone, and Chewena, that are without Members of National Assembly and
Members of County Assembly respectively. On its part, Kisii County is without a Deputy
Governor since there is no Commission to gazette the new appointment. This is a breach of the constitutional rights of these Kenyan citizens. In addition, the country is in a state of a constitutional crisis following the breach of the deadline for delimitation of boundaries.
4. Make the Reform Process People Driven
In the wake of the political tussle for realignments and positioning in the post 2022 elections period, the country went through a period of destructive mass action and massive of lives due to police brutality. To end the strife, the leading political coalitions created a bipartisan team referred to as the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO). The NADCO thereafter had some sessions to receive memoranda from Kenyans, leading to the development of a report that recommends wide-ranging, far reaching, and heavily disruptive reforms.
By its nature, therefore, NADCO is an elitist process that did not address the issues of
concern of the people of Kenya. While ostensibly set up to address the challenges
surrounding the 2022 General Elections, the recommendations in the report by NADCO
are bound to make the journey to the 2027 elections worse than the past cycles.
We thus strongly urge the Speakers of the National Assembly and the Senate to make the reform process put in motion by the NADCO people driven. This will be achieved by:One, publish the NADCO report in a way accessible to all Kenyans so they understand what is being said about their future
Two, have the joint Justice and Legal Affairs Committee visit all the counties to receive
feedback from the citizens, and then use that feedback to review the report and proposed
legal and policy reforms, ensure comprehensive nation-wide public engagement on the Bills of Parliament that are being tabled.
5. Involve Kenyans in Constitution Review Discussions
The report by the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) has recommended 33
amendments to the Constitution of Kenya 2010. Comparatively, the Constitution of Kenya was amended 39 times in the period between 1963 and 2010. The proposed amendment
of the Constitution, which has been formulated as the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment)
Bill 2023, is a major engagement that goes beyond the mandate of Parliamentarians
alone. Such a process requires a Constituent Assembly whose outcome is thereafter subjected to a referendum. We call upon Parliament to put in place the legal framework of this process to be people driven.
6. Call to Kenyans to Engage in the Reform Process Different surveys have shown that less than 30 per cent of the citizens of Kenya have read or are familiar with the NADCO report or the Bills that are amending elections related laws. They call upon all citizens to actively engage in the ongoing reforms process. Do not leave the shaping of your future in the hands of the politicians who are primarily driven by their selfish interests.
Take time to read the reports and Bills and attend public participation forums.
On our part, we have committed to use our platforms to educate Kenyans on the reform
process.
7. Take the Two Thirds Gender Rule Seriously
Recognizably, the Constitution of Kenya 2010 enshrined the principle of inclusivity, and
requires that no gender should occupy more than two thirds of positions in any elective or appointive organ. The persistent failure to implement this provision is not only a denial of the rights of women and men, but also a breach of the Constitution. It is worryingly notable that NADCO did not include the attainment of two thirds gender rule in the Bills they have published.We call upon Parliament to fast track the implementation of the report of the Multi Sectoral Working Group.
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