Gender Cabinet Secretary Aisha Jumwa on Tuesday, February 27, held discussions with Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga in a meeting focused on the implementation of the two-thirds gender rule.
Coming a day after Raila met President William Ruto in Uganda, CS Aisha Jumwa expressed her gratitude to Raila for having made time to meet her and the Multi-sectoral Working Group on the Two-Thirds Gender Principle.
In her statement, the CS said her team resolved to meet Raila to get his insights about the proposed framework designed to ensure the realization of the two-thirds principle.
She explained that her Working Group had collected insights through consultation with various stakeholders but needed the input of leaders like Raila to be complete.
“The consultations cannot be complete without the insights of leaders including the ODM leader and that is why the team and I met Raila Odinga,” she announced in a statement shortly after the meeting at Raila Odinga’s Capitol Hill offices.
On his part, Raila Odinga confirmed that they reached consensus to enhance collaborative efforts towards the full realization of the gender rule.
“This morning at Capitol Hill Square, I held discussions with the Multi-sectoral Working Group on the Two-Thirds Gender Principle, led by CS Aisha Jumwa,” he stated.
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“There was consensus that enhanced collaborative efforts are essential for fully realizing its implementation as intended.”
Aisha Jumwa Moves to Implement Ruto’s Plan
According to CS Jumwa, the MSWG has fulfilled its mandate to develop a framework for the implementation of the not more than two thirds gender principle which President Ruto has in the past expressed his resolve to fulfil.
Despite being a constitutional provision, Kenya has been unable to actualize it three parliaments so far, with past attempts to legislate an enabling law ending in futility.
On 9th December 2022 President Ruto submitted a Memorandum to Parliament requesting it to consider a constitutional amendment to enact the not more than 2/3 gender principle.
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The meeting at Capitol Hill has since sparked a discussion among Kenyans who were quick to throw speculations about its connection to the meeting between Raila Odinga, the President and Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni on February 26.
Despite their affirmation that the meeting was focused on Odinga’s candidature for the African Union Commission Chair job, some Kenyans interpreted their reunion as an indication of the political intrigues between the two political rivals.
“Crucially, at the urging of President Museveni, we also discussed my candidacy for Chairperson of the African Union Commission. I am very grateful to President Museveni for strongly endorsing my candidacy and to President Ruto for fully backing it,” Raila Odinga announced on Monday evening.
