It also emerged that the Jubilee government got alarmed at the activities of the March 4th Movement (M4M) after it learnt its leaders were planning to collect 5.4 million signatures to amend the constitution to introduce new hurdles that could stop President Uhuru Kenyatta from serving a second term in office.
The emergence of M4M has opened a fresh wave of acrimony between former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and the Government after police linked it to his top aide, Eliud Owallo, who is being accused of captaining its operations.
Mr Owallo, who headed Raila’s campaign team in the March 4 elections, is under investigations and has been questioned three times over the group.
He has denied any link with the group and is accusing the Government of using it as an excuse to intimidate Mr Odinga and other Coalition for Reforms and Development (CORD) leaders. Intelligence sources told The County Weekly that the police have put Mr Owallo and some of his friends under 24-hour surveillance.
Mr Owallo has refused to record statements with the police saying he had not been told of his accuser and the actual accusations. The M4M controversy got murkier last week when a man claiming to be its founder, civil rights activist Okiya Omtatah, dared the police to arrest him.
He said M4M is an initiative of Kenyans for Justice and Development (Kejude) Trust and that Mr Owallo was not one of the members.
Mr Omtatah told The County Weekly he was surprised the police were pursuing a person who had no association with the group.
Marginalised
“I am shocked that the police is harassing Mr Owallo when they know I am the brains behind the group. I have written to them over this but they have refused to call me in for questioning,” said Omtatah.
He said the movement, which plans countrywide peaceful protests to drum up support for constitutional changes, enjoys strong support from a cross section of leaders.
“Ten Senators and 45 MPs from both the Jubilee and Cord coalitions have so far backed the idea and more have promised to support us,” said Mr Omtatah.
He added, “All senators and MPs from marginalised communities are behind the idea and have pledged to support it in Parliament.”
He says four lawyers whom he did not name are helping him with drafting the Bill and he seeks to get 1.5 million signatures and the amendment done after six months.
“I am collecting 1.5 million signatures to amend Article 138 of the Constitution to change the country’s voting system where counties determine the presidency and entrench devolution where no-one cannot mess it up,” Mr Omtatah said.
So far, 200,000 people have signed the petition.
“My aim is to detribalise politics and include all Kenyans in the running of this country. I want to replace the tyranny of numbers with the safety of numbers,” Mr Omtatah said.
The County Weekly has seen a full-colour brochure titled Moving From the Tyranny to the Safety of Numbers in Kenya’s Presidential Elections, a concept note and a signature sheet prepared by the group in readiness for their task.
In the brochure, the group has superimposed photographs of the late President Kenyatta, his successors Daniel Moi and Mwai Kibaki in a discussion inside an unspecified location with a caption: “State power has never left this room.”
Also in the picture, seated next to the late President Kenyatta is a boy who resembles President Uhuru Kenyatta. The County Weekly has also seen a letter Mr Omtatah has written to the head of Serious Crime Unit, John Kariuki explaining the motive of his group.
“The M4M is a progressive and an above the board campaign aimed at amending Article 138 of the Constitution of Kenya so as to move the country from the so-called ‘tyranny of numbers’ to the safety of numbers,” says the letter in part.
It adds: “M4M has no concerns about or relations to any current political formations. Further, we have absolutely no plans to disrupt anything or to hold Egypt-style demos, and we have received no funding from any quarters.”
The case is being handled by Inspector Geoffrey Kinyua and Inspector David Cheruiyot of Serious Crime Unit at CID.
Asked who was funding the movement, Mr Omtatah said: “We intend to solicit for funding from any lawful entities. Currently, we are fully dependent on a nationwide network of volunteers, who are working hard to roll out the campaign.”
The activist says the current presidential election format alienates small tribes and favours big tribes.
“The tyranny of numbers is about exclusion and allows a few people to connive and lie to Kenyans that a few tribes can rig elections. They want to justify internal colonisation. Tyranny is law of the jungle to make people think that might is right,” he said.
He added, “In this new system, a president will be elected through county weights (numbers) allocated to each based on the number of elected MPs and senators.”
He said the system would allow presidential candidates to take smaller counties or tribes seriously.
“The Turkanas, Mijikenda and Somalis feel that one of their own can never ascend to the presidency, and they can secede (which is allowed in the Constitution) now that their counties have mineral wealth,” he said.
He added that the procedure is cheaper as there will be fewer electoral areas, does away with rigging and makes the president a national figure.
He said he would present the signatures to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in three months then the counties should approve it before it comes to Parliament. If Parliament approves it, it will be fine and if not, then we go for a referendum,” Mr Omtatah said.
- The Standard
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interesting.