Pastor Godfrey Migwi has boldly taken on President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga over Ksh14 billion planned for the rollout of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).
The pastor, who serves as a religious analyst for the BBC, made the statement on Monday, November 16, challenging Uhuru to focus on the challenges the people were facing owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Migwi alluded that it was irresponsible for Uhuru and Raila to splash Ksh14 billion on a referendum, yet some families were going without food.
"Now you're planning to use Ksh14 billion for a referendum, while many Kenyans are suffering. Some don't have food, others cannot pay their hospital bills.
"So, Mr President and your elder brother (Raila), before promising us anything else, remember that many Kenyans need food, shelter and safety," stated the pastor.
He further insinuated that the manner in which Uhuru was going about popularising the document was not right, claiming that some people did not understand the new proposals.
"President Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta and Hon. Raila ondinga don't push BBI to us by force as though it came from heaven.
"Give me and my mother in the village a copy to read and understand what it is all about. Give us a break to breathe," continued the pastor.
Since the BBI report was launched on Monday, October 26, it has attracted several dissenting voices, with many demanding amendments on the document even as Raila maintained that it would remain unchanged.
Leaders allied to Deputy President William Ruto have in the past demanded an amendment claiming that the report was divisive in its current form.
Other leaders such as former Presidential Aspirant Martha Karua and Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana have come out to fight the report.
Raila met leaders from the pastoralist communities in Nairobi on Monday, November 9, where he promised to consider their concerns about being left out of the process which led people to believing that he was reconsidering his stance on the amendment of the document.
"There is little chance of significant new ideas being brought into the BBI document ahead of the referendum, except for editorial work to make it explicit on demands by various groups where it sounds vague or general, as is the case with the issues of pastoralists.
"It is basically done and there is little likelihood that new ideas will be pushed into it. However, there are groups that feel their views were not captured in the manner they were presented during the collection of views and those are the corrections we are promising to make," he clarified shortly after.
The BBI team expects the IEBC to conduct a referendum anytime from April 6 to June 6.
Migwi was hired as a Religion and Politics analyst in Africa for the BBC in September 2019.
