The Building bridges Initiative task force wrapped up its findings already and withdrew from the public scene. The team, tasked with finding and coming up with lasting solutions towards peace, stability and cohesion in Kenya, after visits to Counties countrywide to collect views, has been working round the clock to bring about the much needed recommendations. President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga formed the team after the handshake, on the back of previous election jitters and clashes coupled with a handicap political scene that has rendered Kenya unbearable for periods in the past.
The Head of State is set to release the findings of the report, the recommendations and conversations it may propose, and leaders are predictably divided over its contents. Those opposed to it have used a political lens to see that it will pave the way for a power inducing deal in 2022, and will create kingmakers in the shadows instead of letting the mantle of king making rest with Kenyans. However, in the pull and push and political exchanges, we must ask ourselves if the BBI will really benefit Kenyans or it’s a predictable political tool.
In Western Kenya, the cry has always revolved around the lack of unity and inability to come up with a united front. Politically speaking, there is no end in sight to the divisions among leaders from the region, given that they can’t take one stand in what they believe. So, we have to pose the question, will the BBI finally be the piece that brings the region together, or will it cause further divisions? It’s high time we look at the report from a critical point of view. Already, we have been told how unpleasant the report is because it seeks to create positions for a few leaders and also how good it is because it seeks to unite Kenyans, but we must stand a t a neutral point and judge by ourselves.
As Western region, we need to remember that some politics bigwigs may view the region as a toss up, a wildcard, the region to fight for in order to gain political mileage come 2022. This has happened severally, with leaders still trying to woo the region which doesn’t have a stand cometh the hour. So, when the BBI report will be made public, let’s review it carefully and use the open book to write our own path, because it’s already known the report will revitalize and renew the political scene. Let’s ensure we are part of the coming political landscape, because for too long we have been escorting the main opera performers, while we sit in the audience.
