Kenyans say no to proposed constitution

By Nanna Jordt and Anne Hoff

05. December 2005

On November 21^st the Kenyan population rejected the constitution proposed by their government in the first referendum carried out in the country’s history. Following the defeat, president Kibaki two days later made the drastic move of firing his entire cabinet and proroguing parliament.

The referendum process has been characterized by excessive campaigning for and against the draft, some of which ended up in violence and loss of lives. However, on the referendum day itself, peace prevailed in most of the country. And when the result finally was announced with 57% for no and 43% for yes, a sea of people wearing orange – the symbol of the no-movement – were partying in the streets of Nairobi and other big cities, while leaders on both sides called for reconciliation.

The current constitution being a colonial constitution disfigured by post-colonial parliamentary amendments, most Kenyans agree that the country need a new one. When the NARC (National Rainbow Coalition) government came into power in 2002, led by President Kibaki, one of the most important electoral promises was to bring in place a new Kenyan constitution within 100 days. A comprehensive process was initiated, involving delegates from every constituency in the country. The delegates finally came up with a draft constitution, the so-called Bomas draft, conceived by most Kenyans to be the result of a people-driven and democratic process.

However, Kenyan politicians were not happy with the Bomas draft, and towards the end of the process, government withdrew. Nothing happened for more than a year, but finally a new draft came into existence. This draft deviated from the Bomas draft on several key issues, one of the most contentious being the power of the president. While the Bomas draft divided power between an executive prime minister and the president, in the new draft (popularly known as the Wako draft), power was vested solely in the president and a non executive prime minister.

Opposition parties and civil society joined hands in protesting against the Wako draft, calling it undemocratic and not reflecting the aspirations of the people. However, rather than focusing on the principles of the constitution, the whole process ended up in political campaigns for or against president Kibaki and his rival Raila Odinga. Further, the civic education carried out was poor, in most cases leaving Kenyans to be swayed by politicians. When the draft was finally put to vote, it gained wide support only in Central Province, dominated by the country’s largest ethnic group, the Kikuyus, which is also the home of the president. In all other provinces (7 of them) the majority voted against the draft.

The country now awaits president Kibaki’s next move