Kenya's high court issues landmark ruling blocking BBI bill as unconstitutional

In a scathing ruling, five High Court judges in Kenya have blocked a government-backed plan to make fundamental changes to the country's constitution. [...] The judges said the constitution amendment bill, popularly referred to as the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), was irregular, illegal and unconstitutional. President Kenyatta and his political nemesis-turned-ally, Raila Odinga, unveiled the initiative after a truce following the contentious 2017 election, which saw violent clashes around the country. [...] The two leaders said the initiative, which proposes, among others, the expansion of the executive arm of government, would make the country's politics more inclusive. [...] The BBI bill had been passed by the National Assembly and the Senate before Thursday's court ruling and was awaiting a presidential assent, after which Kenyans would have headed to a referendum before next year's elections. [...] In a four-hour televised ruling, [the Court] said President Kenyatta had violated the constitution by initiating a process which ought to have been started by ordinary citizens. They also ruled that the BBI constitutional committee, a body created by the president, was illegal, adding that Mr Kenyatta had failed the leadership and integrity test.
Read the full article here: BBC News