Atwoli dismisses MPs who want to amend the constitution through parliament

By Tobby Otum

Central Organization of Trade Unions, Kenya, (COTU) Secretary General Francis Atwoli dismissed a section of legislators who have formed a caucus to amend the constitution through parliament.

He said he wondered what the legislators were up to pointing out that he is opposed to the move.

“As an initiator and proponent of the amendment of the constitution and on behalf of the workers in the country, I am opposed to the move,” he pointed out.

Atwoli said he is totally opposed to the initiative by the caucus and urged them to re-think their move and consult widely.

He spoke to journalists at Mombasa’s Moi international airport in Mombasa county before boarding a direct flight to Kisumu ahead of this year’s Madaraka Day celebrations in Kisumu county.

The COTU Secretary General defended the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) saying it is more popular than the caucus after going through the required stages.

Atwoli termed the move by the caucus in parliament as a hijacking of the process to amend the constitution through parliament.

He told journalists the issue of the Inter-Parties Parliamentary Group [IPPG] has been overtaken by events after the approval of the BBI document by 44 out 47 county governments.

“It will be wrong for the process to be sneaked back into the national assembly after vigorous campaigns headed by President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM party leader Raila Odinga,” he pointed out.

The COTU boss said the BBI was popularized in the entire country through the proponents of the document and was approved at the county assembly level.