On Tuesday, 23rd February, various county assemblies debated the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) bill. The day was dubbed BBI Super Tuesday on social media, with many Kenyans sharing their views.
The list of counties approving the BBI bill continued to grow today with over 30 counties having approved the bill.
Nyeri County Assembly became the 24th to pass the BBI with supporters of the bill joining leaders in celebrating.
However, MCA Eric Wamumbi from Nyeri won praises from Kenyans for standing his ground against the bill.
If only Kenya MCAs could have been like Nyeri MCA Eric Wamumbi who use his brain not like others using bellies to make discreet decision, Kenya could be a better place. He has opposed the BBI Bill with valid reasons.pic.twitter.com/89q4N01Jlj
— Kawangware Finest ™ (Geoffrey Moturi) (@cbs_ke) February 23, 2021
It was, however, worth noting that the chaos that recently rocked the Baringo County Assembly debate was not experienced in any county today. This now paves the way for a referendum as the BBI bill has passed the constitutional requirement of 24 counties.
Referendum On Course: When will the BBI Referendum Be Held?
The referendum is slated to be held by June 2021. This is according to Dennis Waweru, who is the BBI secretariat co-chairman, who spoke to journalists today. BBI proponents have already planned rallies to garner more support.
“We wish to emphasize that we are within the timelines we had communicated earlier, and we are on course to hold the referendum by June 2021. We are confident of obtaining approvals from at least 35 county assemblies, way above the constitutional threshold of 24 counties,”
he said
The BBI bill will still have to be debated in both Houses of Parliament. However, the process will not involve changing anything in the bill. Speaker Justin Muturi confirmed that it will only take 3 weeks for the BBI bill to be passed by the House.
This has particularly not gone well with some who feel there’s a need to change some clauses in the bill.
Once the bill is passed by both houses the speakers will reach out to the President. He will, in turn, communicate with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission for the referendum to be held.
Do you support the BBI? Let us know in the comments and keep it C.O.K.
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