Kenya to Hold Referendum After 24 County Assemblies Approve BBI Bill

Kenya will head to a referendum as early as June after the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Constitutional Amendment Bill received the support of at least 24 county assemblies as required by law.

Nearly 20 county assemblies passed the Bill on Tuesday, taking the number beyond the constitutional threshold of 24. 

County assemblies that approved the Bill on Tuesday are Bungoma, Narok, Makueni, Machakos, Kitui, Lamu, Garissa, Mombasa, Murang'a, Kirinyaga, Nyeri, Taita Taveta, Nyamira, Nakuru, Nyandarua, Meru, Tharaka Nithi, and Makueni.

They joined the 12 counties that had passed the Bill as of Monday, including Siaya, Kisumu, Homa Bay, Busia, Vihiga, Trans Nzoia, Nairobi, Kisii, West Pokot, Kajiado, Laikipia, and Samburu.

Although the Bill needs to be tabled in both the National Assembly and the Senate, the referendum is confirmed since the decision of the two Houses—whether endorsing or rejecting the Bill—does not change the county assemblies’ endorsement.

Once the two Houses make their decisions on the Bill, the Speakers will communicate to the President, who will, in turn, send a message to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to hold a referendum within 90 days.

The BBI Secretariat is already preparing for the next phase of the referendum process, which will include countrywide campaigns to popularize the initiative.

“From March 1st, we are rolling out countrywide tours to take BBI to the people. With all the signs that the assemblies will pass the document by a big number, we will be rolling out grand plans to tell the people what is in the document and counter any propaganda out there,” BBI Secretariat co-chair Junet Mohamed told Nation.