Minister Marsden Madoka yesterday rejected his Coast colleague Shariff Nassir's warning of bloodshed over the faiths-led Ufungamano bid for constitutional reform.

"We will not advocate bloodshed or violence of any sort," said Mr Madoka.

He added: "What I hope is that wisdom will prevail somewhere before they start work. The Ufungamano Initiative group should realise their folly and wait to give their views to the Parliamentary Select Commission's commissioners."

He told his Mwatate constituents in Mombasa that the parliamentary commissioners, to be chosen following acceptance of the Raila report, would go to constituencies rather than district level to collect views from the people before drafting a model Constitution.

"This would then be discussed in Parliament before being returned to the people for their approval before being finally passed in Parliament," he said.

Mr Nassir, addressing a meeting at Chepsigot in Keiyo South on Saturday, warned the Ufungamano group to prepare for trouble if they collected and collated views on reform.

He said he would rather be dead than allow the Ufungamano commissioners to collect views in Mombasa, adding he was ready to defend President Moi's government.

Discussing the review process, Mr Madoka criticised the leader of the Official Opposition, Mr Mwai Kibaki, for abdicating his responsibilities in Parliament to the Ufungamano Initiative group.

"What is driving Kibaki and his colleagues to Ufungamano is merely personal egos, but, deep in their hearts, they know it has no legal backing," he said.

He dismissed the recently-named 18 Ufungamano constitutional review commissioners as Nairobians who lacked a mandate to carry out the exercise.

"Except for three, the rest of those chosen as commissioners by the faiths-led Ufungamano group lack credentials and credibility," he said.

With the colossal sum of Sh430 million needed for the exercise, Mr Madoka predicted the Ufungamano Initiative would not begin.

Mr Madoka and Mr Nassir – both Cabinet Ministers in the Office of the President – also differed over whether majimbo (federalism) would benefit the Coast's people.

Mr Madoka said what they needed was regional economic empowerment, not majimboism, which has been advocated repeatedly by Mr Nassir.

He told his constituents there was a misconception that majimboism was the answer to the political, social and economical woes facing them.

"I am always pained to hear people rallying for majimboism without first understanding what majimbo means. The type of majimboism being advocated here is 'kila mtu kwao' (everybody back home). Is that what we want?" he asked.