Piece by: Brian Oruta

16 November 2022

• Speaking on Wednesday, the President said the MPs should prioritize bills that will better the lives of Kenyans.
• He spoke while chairing a UDA Parliamentary Group meeting at State House, on Wednesday morning.

Head of State, William Ruto has told UDA legislators that he is not interested in changing the constitution to remove term limits.

Speaking on Wednesday, the President said the MPs should prioritise bills that will better the lives of Kenyans.

He added that his only focus at the moment is to work for the people of Kenya.

“Do not spend your time pushing for selfish and self-serving legislation, like changing the Constitution to remove term limits, my focus is service to the people,” Ruto said.

He spoke while chairing a UDA Parliamentary Group meeting at State House, on Wednesday morning.

A few days ago, Fafi MP Salah Yakub hit the headlines after calling for scrapping of the presidential term limit.

Yakub in his proposal said the cap should be on age and not period service.

The UDA legislator claimed some of his counterparts were already working on a Constitutional amendment bill to replace the two-term limit with an age limit of 75 years.

The MP cited the case of the late President Mwai Kibaki who retired after two five-year terms despite what he said was a stellar performance that turned around the country’s economy.

“I think we made a mistake to allow him to go home after he completed his term. We limited his dream when the Constitution removed him yet he served marvellously in the two terms,” Yakub said.

“I believe if he (Kibaki) had done more than two terms, we could have reached the status of Malaysia or Singapore. Is it thus not advisable to remove a person because of term limits yet they are performing,” he said.

President William Ruto’s party however, denied plans to change the Constitution to remove presidential term limits.

The party and its chairman Johnson Muthama said they are not involved in the talk of removing term limits or setting an age cap.

“Hon Yakub made a personal statement which has nothing to do with UDA. As a party, we stand for open democracy and we remain supportive of the two-term presidential limit and no ongoing discussions to scrap it,” Muthama said.