Deputy President William Ruto has made a U-turn on his stand on the proposed referendum.
He was speaking at a fundraiser in Tharaka Nithi County when he announced that he would support the push if it would ease the burden on Kenyans caused by over-representation.
He clarified that he would not support the creation of new posts, what he had been accusing Raila Odinga of orchestrating.
“We have no problem with the referendum. Our problem is hypocrisy and conman-ship, to tell us the referendum was agreed during the handshake, you are lying to us,” he stated.
Calls to change the constitution had been dismissed by the DP and politicians allied to him.
Senate Majority leader Kipchumba Murkomen stated that a referendum could not happen because everyone would want to amend something they don't like about the constitution.
However, a section of Rift Valley MPs urged Ruto to handle the matter with caution, warning that it could isolate him politically.
“Ruto has to be careful in the way he handles this issue of the referendum as it can isolate him from the rest of the people in government and scuttle his efforts to unite the country and solidify his political base ahead of the 2022 election,” warned Cherangany MP Joshua Kutuny.
Raila had announced in September 2018 that a referendum was part of the handshake agreement he made with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
He added that the Building Bridges Initiative team was traversing the country collecting views on what Kenyans want to be changed in the current constitution.
