Senator Maanzo warns that a broad-based government could potentially evolve into a broad-based dictatorship.

Makueni Senator Dan Maanzo has expressed opposition to President William Ruto’s proposal to form a broad-based government that includes opposition members in his Cabinet. On July 24, President Ruto nominated four members from the ODM party, sparking speculation about a possible alliance between the government and the opposition. However, Azimio’s Raila Odinga denied any power-sharing deal, stating that the four individuals joined the government in their personal capacity.

During an interview on Daybreak, Maanzo likened the concept of a broad-based government to a “broad-based dictatorship,” where all parties align with the government, similar to the one-party state rule under former President Daniel Moi. He criticized National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah for allegedly using his position to influence decisions in the House, noting that most laws passed in parliament are swayed by the majority.

“We have used the power of thumb; the attitude Ichung’wah has is to rule people by force, which is unconstitutional. He is not the law. For a long time, Majority leaders have pretended to be the law. The broad-based government poses a danger to the country as it could become a broad-based dictatorship,” Maanzo stated.

Having served in Parliament for 12 years, Maanzo asserted that many laws passed by the majority are illegal and that public participation is often a mere formality. As a lawyer, he referenced the court’s decision to declare the Finance Act 2023 unconstitutional, emphasizing that the country would revert to the previous Act.

He advised the government to address corruption to ensure effective governance, highlighting that a significant portion of taxpayer revenue is misappropriated.

“We must address this quickly. We need to draft a new Finance Bill. Even the 2022 Finance Bill can be amended sufficiently to sustain the government for a short period,” he said.

“Unfortunately, even with these Finance Acts, a lot of tax revenue is collected, yet much of it is misused. I don’t see the country losing much while trying to fix this, as each financial year, June and July are usually underfunded. Things start to pick up in September, see some action in October, and slow down again by December and January as we prepare for another cycle, with the budget read in June.”