Senate Majority Whip and Murang'a Senator Irungu Kang’ata has for the first time spoken after a letter addressed to President Uhuru Kenyatta leaked online outlining the poor reception of the BBI Bill in the Mt Kenya region.
In a tweet, Kang’ata admitted that the letter in question is authentic but he is not the one who leaked to the media.
He sought to clarify that someone whom he had copied in the letter is response for its leakage to the public, an act he regrets.
“Kindly though the letter dated 30th December is authentic, I didn't give it to the media.Someone else who had been copied did - I apologise for that. With the benefit of hindsight, I should have copied no one else. Trust substantive issues raised in the letter will be remedied” reads Irungu Kang’ata’s tweet.
On Monday, the letter which found its way to the public under unclear circumstances cited a poor reception of the BBI Bill in the Mt Kenya region.
In the letter, Senator Kang'ata stated in part: "Your Excellency, I concede, I may be wrong. In fact I wish I was wrong and that my views are mere pessimistic view of things."
Based on a survey I conducted during the December holidays, I have come to the conclusion that BBI is unpopular in the Mt Kenya.
By illustration, out of every 10 persons I picked randomly, six oppose BBI, two support and two are indifferent,".
Also Read: Letter to Uhuru outlining why Mt Kenya is not supporting BBI leaked to the press
He went on to outline that a major reason why the President's backyard may be opposed to the BBI movement was internal wrangles within the Jubilee party.
Kang'ata added that the use of provincial administrators in BBI mobilization had also caused a public perception of government strong-arming the citizens to accept the BBI agenda.
"There is a general feeling of economic deprivation at household levels in the region. The political actors who are selling this narrative are employing the 'common-man' language," the Senator explained.