In a huge blow to President Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya's judges have once again blocked a government-backed plan to make fundamental changes to the constitution. Supreme Court judges said the president had acted unlawfully when spearheading the reforms, known as the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI). They said it should have been led by citizens - not a sitting head of state. The defeat comes ahead of crucial elections in August. Another element the Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional was the plan to create an extra 70 seats in parliament - which critics had viewed as a self-serving attempt to reward loyal politicians.
Kenyatta has already served two terms as president so will not stand in those polls, but had staked his legacy on passing this bill, which he argued would make politics more inclusive. Among its key proposals was the introduction of a new post of prime minister. There had been speculation that Kenyatta could seek this role should his rival-turned-ally Raila Odinga win the presidency.
His previous bid in 2017 saw him narrowly lose to President Kenyatta, amid allegations of fraud and fears of renewed political violence. A year later, however, the pair agreed a deal, which is the basis of the BBI reforms, while President Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto have fallen out. He and Odinga are expected to be the two front-runners in this year's presidential race.
"The whole of this scheme looked to me like it was choreographed to try and force me to get out of government," Ruto told reporters last month. "The so-called 'Building Bridges' built no bridge." Odinga says he is not deterred by the Supreme Court decision and will "protect the interests" of those who backed the reforms.
While many analysts will see the ruling as a win for Ruto, the real winners are ordinary Kenyans who have fought throughout from the lower courts to the Supreme Court to defend the country's constitution from being amended by elites without public participation.
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