Kenyans react to Supreme Court verdict on BBI collapse

With the Supreme Court on Thursday ruling that the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) bill is unconstitutional, opinion has been divided about the ramifications the judgement will have on the country’s political scene. 

The Supreme Court bench disallowed the appeal on account of a number of issues, key among them was the proposed creation of 70 new constituencies, the participation of the president as an initiator of the popular initiative and a lack of adequate public participation when the bill was proposed.  

According to lawyer Prof. Ben Sihanya, one of the appellants representing the BBI team, despite being abolished, the BBI bill has opened the door for the country to debate constitutional amendments in future. 

“The fundamental issue is if Kenyans can debate on constitutional amendment. They didn’t go into detail about the content but the main issue is, the so-called basic structure doctrine is dead in Kenya, it is not applicable and that is the main point. Kenyans can now debate constitutional amendment in future,” he said.  

Lawyer Maura Omoke similarly stated that following the ruling, the BBI bill cannot be reintroduced again unless it is started afresh. He likewise noted that any changes to the law in future will have to adhere to certain steps, such as public participation, underlined in the constitution. 

“The BBI has been confirmed to be totally nullified, it cannot come back unless it is started afresh. The good thing is that in the end what counts is that whenever there is any effort to amend the constitution, we shall always have the steps provided in the constitution,” he added.

His sentiments were likewise shared by lawyer Nelson Havi who labelled the ruling as a landmark decision that will go a long way in shaping Kenya’s democratic space. 

“The supreme court has agreed with the High Court and the Court of Appeal and by extension our arguments that there was no adequate public participation in the process towards the initiation and the promotion of this bill. We cannot alter the structure of the government at this point in time,” he said. 

Kenyans likewise took to social media to give their two cents on the ruling.