The Gallant celebration to mark the day was done on the 27th of August 2010 at the famous Uhuru Park (freedom Park) in the capital city, Nairobi. The occasion was witnessed by international dignitaries including head of states and ordinary Kenyans. On this day I truly missed being home with my people but felt proud that Kenyans carried out this process in a peaceful and united way even when they disagreed.
Kenyans have clamored for a new constitution since the 1960’s after independence because the first constitution was negotiated with the British and was not really Kenyan. The old constitution created a lot of problems because it was tailored to fit the British system of divide and rule. It never gave Kenyans real independence but seemed to have transferred power to those it favored. It also gave the president too much power which was subject to abuse. The poor folks felt left out and certain tribes felt marginalized because of the politics of the day.
Kenyans were divided into two camps before the voting in of the constitution; the “NO” camp and the “ YES” camp. The “No” camp wanted some changes made in the constitution before it was passed into law. The church in particular, which was in the “NO” camp, was opposed to a clause allowing abortion if the mother’s life is at risk. The church was also opposed to the retention of a clause allowing the Kadhi courts.
Kadhi courts are lower courts specifically set for Muslims to deal with matters concerning marriage, divorce, property and custody. The church was of the view that no religion should have preference in the new constitution. However this would have been contrary to the spirit of the law since the courts have been in existence since independence and have not caused any conflict. Further most of Kenya’s laws borrow from the Bible concerning matters of morality.
Eventually the day of voting for the referendum came on the 4th of August 2010 and Kenyans came out to vote in numbers. About 72% of registered voters, voted and the “YES” camp won with a landslide. The “Yes” camp had about 66% of the votes while the “NO” camp had about 30%. It must be remembered that the “NO” team were not opposed to the new constitution but they wanted their concern addressed before the voting while the “YES” team felt the draft constitution was good and any changes could be addressed later.
Read more: http://socyberty.com/issues/the-rebirth-of-a-nation-kenya-the-beloved/#ixzz11q3m59ND
Eventually the day of voting for the referendum came on the 4th of August 2010 and Kenyans came out to vote in numbers. About 72% of registered voters, voted and the “YES” camp won with a landslide. The “Yes” camp had about 66% of the votes while the “NO” camp had about 30%. It must be remembered that the “NO” team were not opposed to the new constitution but they wanted their concern addressed before the voting while the “YES” team felt the draft constitution was good and any changes could be addressed later.
Read more: http://socyberty.com/issues/the-rebirth-of-a-nation-kenya-the-beloved/#ixzz11q3m59ND
No comments:
Post a Comment