Politics

Kenya Decides: Supreme Court knocks out President Kenyatta’s constitution reform to expand parliament, executive

Published

1 year ago

March 31, 2022

As the 2022 presidential elections in Kenya approach, President Uhuru Kenyatta’s bid to change the constitution to change the country’s constitution has been labeled as “illegal” by the Supreme Court of Kenya. Thus, dealing a blow to him and his allies ahead of going to the polls in August.

Six of the seven judges overseeing the case at the Supreme Court said, ruled against Kenyatta’s proposal to expand the executive stressing that the President cannot initiate constitutional amendments or changes through popular initiative under article 257 of the constitution,”

The failed law would have expanded the executive and increased the number of parliamentary seats from 290 to 360, in the biggest change to Kenya’s political system since it introduced a new constitution in 2010.

The ruling was given by a seven-judge bench at the Supreme Court headed by Martha Koome, the country’s first female chief justice.

The ruling however left the possibility of adopting popular reforms – Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) – to be instituted by parliament or through other means, so long as the president did not have a hand in the changes.

The “Building Bridges Initiative” (BBI) was a constitutional referendum that occurred in Kenya in 2021. The initiative consisted of a series of 78 proposed amendments to the Constitution of Kenya and spanned 13 of its 18 chapters.

Many however disagreed with the BBI, most notable amongst the BBI detractors is Kenyatta’s estranged deputy William Ruto, who is running for the top job in August. Ruto believes the plan is a little more than a naked grab for power by a two-term president who cannot run a third time.

Related Topics:Featured kenya decides President Uhuru Kenyatta

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Politics

Opposition party wins majority seats in Guinea Bissau’s parliament

Published

16 hours ago

June 9, 2023

Ifeoluwa Dada

After a thirteen months break in Guinea-Bissau’s parliament, the opposition coalition has won majority seats after the legislative elections held on Sunday.

Over 20 political parties and coalitions, including the former ruling PAIGC party and its rival MADEM G15, presented candidates for various constituencies across the country.

According to official results, the PAI Terra Ranka coalition, led by the former ruling PAIGC party, won 54 of 102 seats in Sunday’s poll, while the ruling Madem G15, won 28 seats.

The development alters the planned constitutional reforms of President Embalo which would have allowed him to consolidate power by ridding the country of its semi-presidential system.

Under the current political system, the majority party or coalition appoints the government but the president has the authority to dismiss it in certain circumstances, a situation that has led to political gridlock and infighting in the past.

The political stability of the country has been consistently threatened by military incursions with successful and failed coup attempts. The latest was in February 2022 when gunmen stormed a government compound where President Embalo was holding a cabinet meeting, in an attempt to stage a coup.

Politics

Algeria, Sierra Leone get non-permanent seat at UN Security Council

Published

3 days ago

June 7, 2023

Ifeoluwa Dada

Algeria and Sierra Leone, have been elected as non-permanent members of the the United Nations’ Security Council for 2024-2025.

The two countries are part of the ten countries elected for two years in the Council outside the five power bloc countries— the United States, China, Russia, France and the United Kingdom.

The countries replace Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana and the United Arab Emirates and will join Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique and Switzerland who were elected last year.

For Sierra Leone, it’s a return to the council after 53 years. Its Foreign Minister, David Francis said it was “a great day for this small, progressive and confident country…which has successfully transitioned from war to peace.”

Guyana and South Korea were also elected unchallenged while Slovenia handily beat Belarus for the only contested seat.

An official of rights agency, Human Rights Watch, Louis Charbonneau remarked that “the vote in the General Assembly shows why a competition for UN elections is essential” after Slovenia edged Belarus for the seat going to Eastern Europe and obtained 153 votes, against 38 in Belarus.

“UN member states have undoubtedly decided that Belarus’ grave human rights violations at home and attempts to cover up Russian atrocities in Ukraine disqualify it from serving on the Security Council, a crucial body for ensuring human rights. humans,” he added.

Algeria got 184 votes, South Korea 180 votes, Sierra Leone 188 votes and Guyana 191 in a single candidate votes for four seat reserved for Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America/Caribbean.

There has been a long debate about the place of Africa in international relations. At the inception of the United Nations, only four independent African countries represented the continent when 50 representatives of different countries met in San Francisco, California, in 1945 to complete the Charter of the United Nations.