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East Africa: Neighbours Also Suffer As Kenya Burns
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The East African (Nairobi)
7 January 2008
Posted to the web 7 January 2008
Philip Ngunjiri
Nairobi
The ripple effects of the current political stalemate are being felt in the region, with the country's immediate neighbours that rely on the Kenyan port of Mombasa suffering the most.
According to Arun Devani, chairman of the East Africa Business Community, the five countries of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo are suffering more than Kenya.
"In a span of four days, fuel pump prices shot up from $1.2 to $5 per litre in Kampala. The situation is equally grave in the other major cities in the region."
Mr Devani was in a Kenya business community delegation that included the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, Federation of Kenya Employers, Kenya Private Sector Alliance and the Kenya National Federation of Agricultural Producers who told a media briefing that the country was losing Ksh2 billion ($31.45 million) worth of taxes daily due to unrest caused by the disputed presidential election results.
Most business premises in Nairobi have remained closed after the announcement that declared the incumbent Mwai Kibaki the president. Since then Nairobi and its environs has been rocked by widespread riots and looting.
The results announced by the Electoral Commission of Kenya have caused tension and violence in the country and a breakdown in security because they were not considered credible and the process appeared to have been compromised, said FKE chairman Patrick Obath.
"We are concerned about the country and are keen to protect it from further violence and loss of lives.
Our hearts bleed for Kenyans who have died needlessly and we extend our condolences. In the national interest, it is important for the truth to be established about the electoral outcome," he said.
In this regard, the business community appealed to all the main political protagonists to facilitate a process of establishing the truth with regard to the disputed elections.
The numbers presented by the commission are in dispute, they said in a statement. Both parties must facilitate an independent process that establishes the truth about the verdict of Kenyans in the elections. Such results will provide a basis for negotiations between the political leaders on a settlement acceptable to both of them.
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Economists credit Kibaki's government with allowing private enterprise the freedom to flourish. But they say growth could have been even better if the government had tackled corruption, speeded infrastructure improvements and fought crime.
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