Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga has rubbished calls by some politicians to have the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report be implemented through Parliament.
Already, a section of Jubilee Party politicians are rooting for a quick scrutiny of the suggestions in the report, which they say can be smoothly and cheaply done through the legislative houses.
However, Raila, a key figure in the push for changes, on Thursday said parliamentarians must keep off the issue, noting that Kenyans must have the final say on it.
Speaking during the launch of his party's new headquarters in Lavington, Nairobi, Odinga said BBI must be subjected to a referendum, and Kenyans must take it over.
“The process must be people owned, it must not be taken to Parliament. It is the people to own the document," he said, remarks that have been echoed by 25 MPs already.
Speaking at the new ODM headquarters, a section of ODM leaders urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to set up an implementation committee to take over the report.
"The surest way to kill BBI is through Parliament, which has never managed to raise two-thirds of members to make any constitutional changes. A referendum does not need to be expensive,” said ODM Chairman John Mbadi.
They also requested Uhuru to form a committee of experts to fine-tune the document before its subjected to a referendum.
This comes at a time when Ruto's allies, who were initially opposed to the changes, appear to have changed their heart after the BBI release.
Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu said Kenyans must be allowed to look into the document.
"Let us allow Kenyans to read and own the process. We are asking the President to appoint an Implementation Committee of the BBI report," said the youthful lawmaker.