Coast Clergy Rejects Proposed Extension of Presidential Term Limit
By Harrison Kivisu & Mwakwaya Raymond
Email, thecoastnewspaper@hmail.com
Coast interfaith religious leaders have asked the Senate to purge the proposed constitutional amendments bill seeking to extend presidential and other elective positions’ term limit to seven years from the current five.
The amendments, currently before the Senate, proposes to amend articles 101,136,177 and 180 of the Constitution to revise the term limits of elected leaders.
Clerics, under the aegis of Coast Interfaith Council of Clerics told senators on October 26, 2024 to reject the bill and instead focus on their constitutional duty of safeguarding devolution.
According to them the senators are now overstepping their mandate of oversight, and instead engaging on non-issues at the expense of their voters’ priorities.
“We propose shortening the National Assembly term to three years and president to four years aligning with international best practices,” said Bishop Abarijah Kinnogah, CICC secretary general.
He said if they passed the bill, Kenyans would know they did not mean well for the public warning they would have no option, but move to court to block the process.
Bishop Amos Lewa of Joy Fellowship Ministries Kenya said Kenyans were suffering under high cost of living while leaders were ignoring their predicaments.
“As religious leaders from the coast, we are strongly opposed to this, and if it must be done, let them bring it to us Kenyans and we shall rejected it.”
Supreme Council of Kenyan Muslim (SUPKEM) representative Sheikh Khamis Mwaguzo noted that matters of changing presidential term required a referendum which the country was not ready for.
“The know if they go the citizenry way of referendum, no Kenyan will support that, now they want to use ‘shortcuts’, through the senate to amend constitution,this is unacceptable.”
He said Kenyans should ready themselves to elect leaders when the term of the 13th Parliament comes to an end in 2027 since the current leadership had betrayed them.
“The change of the law will just benefit a few individuals,and I want to ask the church and religious leaders not to be carried away by political affiliation.”
According to him the bill also seeks to amend Article 151 by inserting Article 151a that proposes to create the office of prime minister to be appointed by the president from members of Parliament belonging to the largest party or coalition of parties in the August house.
The clerics claimed that the new law amendments would provide for the procedure of the removal of a governor and a deputy governor from office.
“Our democracy must be strengthened through meaningful reforms that uphold accountability, transparency and public participation, not through amendments that centralize power and diminish local governance,” he said.
