Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga says he plans to push for constitutional reforms to re-introduce the role of prime minister and further decentralize power. Mr. Odinga thinks doing so would help resolve divisions exacerbated by the East African nation’s disputed elections.
Odinga made the statement in an opinion piece in Kenya’s Sunday Nation newspaper.
“The presidential system as currently exercised in Kenya is still a strong tool for exclusion,” Odinga, wrote. “An “obvious alternative” is for separate heads of state and government, with a president “typically elected indirectly” and a prime minister who leads the majority party or coalition in parliament”.
Kenya’s presidential system, under which the winner takes all, has been blamed for political tensions and post-election violence. Odinga held the post of premier from 2008 to 2013, as part of a deal to end two months of ethnic conflict after a disputed December 2007 vote that left more than 1,100 people dead.
