Nairobi — Faced with a stalemate in the negotiated power-sharing deal, President Kibaki has summoned a Cabinet meeting Monday morning where he is expected to spell to his team the hard options he has to take.

The Cabinet meeting, which is extraordinary in many aspects, is seen as the President's effort to save the pact between him and Prime Minister-designate, Mr Raila Odinga.

The President is expected to use the session to tell his team what direct impact the shared Government will have on them and how he intends to move forward.

Last evening, the Government Spokesman, Dr Alfred Mutua, confirmed the meeting. But he said he did not know the agenda.

However, a source said the meeting would be held at the Office of the President, Harambee House, and not the traditional State House boardroom where weekly Cabinet meetings are held every Thursday.

This will be the first Cabinet meeting since the President and Raila signed the deal on February 28.

Cabinet meetings by the half team of ministers, which was constituted soon after the December 27 General Election, had been stopped to give way to the constitution of the new Cabinet.

All the ministers have been invited to the meeting through the office of the Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet, Mr Francis Muthaura.

The crucial meeting, which starts at 10am, comes against the backdrop of anxiety over shared Cabinet portfolios in the grand coalition, which is already entrenched in the law.

None of the ministers we talked to was aware of the meeting's agenda. However, a top official told The Standard that the Cabinet would discuss the state of the nation, displaced people, development projects and bilateral relations with ODM.

A Cabinet minister who did not wish to be named said: "It will be a make-or-break meeting that will shape the destiny of the nation. Kibaki could very well use today's meeting to warn members that their jobs could be on the line. The decision to reshuffle the Cabinet and drop any of us will be in the public interest."

Some could lose their jobs

On Sunday, President Kibaki appeared to play his cards close to his chest when he attended a church service at the Holy Family Basilica, Nairobi, alone. Unlike in the past, neither family members, Cabinet ministers nor Government officials accompanied him to church.

The President, who has in the past one month held several meetings exclusively with Raila at Harambee House, is expected to communicate to his team the hard choices he will have to make.

One inevitable point that the meeting is expected to discuss is that of sharing Cabinet posts with ODM on a 50-50 basis. This could mean that some Cabinet ministers appointed from the PNU side could lose their jobs in the new dispensation.

Kibaki could tell some that today's could be their last Cabinet meeting.

Other ministers might have to be content with being moved from plum portfolios to backwater dockets in the impending reshuffle. Kibaki's top allies and long-time political buddies hold some key ministries that could be given to ODM. But the current situation leaves the President with no option but to reshuffle some and drop others.

ODM is demanding at least four key ministries, including Finance of Mr Amos Kimunya, Mr John Michuki's Roads and Public Works, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta's Local Government and Planning that has not been filled.

If proposals made today lead to an agreement between Kibaki and Raila, then the next Cabinet meeting would be of the grand coalition government.

Raila, who wants the number retained at 34, has opposed Kibaki's proposal for a Cabinet of 44.

This means that if the President succumbs to pressure for a lean team, he will finally face the option of scaling down his team rather than moving them to proposed new ministries.

But as ODM insists on a lean Cabinet, the PNU side is calling for a 'clean' Cabinet, an issue that is likely to add a spanner into the works.

Commenting on today's meeting, the Cabinet minister who spoke to The Standard illustrated the anxiety going on among them.

"ODM is insisting on a 'lean' Cabinet, we will insist on a 'clean' Cabinet. The number does not matter," he said, adding that tomorrow's meeting could decide to adopt a hardline position or soften their approach to accommodate ODM's demands.

On his part, Raila had on Saturday, a day after meeting Kibaki, said both parties were facing immense pressure from their teams, but said they must move forward.

ODM officials said they had not been notified of the Cabinet meeting, but some said it was expected that Kibaki and Raila would meet soon after, probably not later than tomorrow.

ODM Secretary-General, Prof Anyang' Nyong'o, said his party was not aware of today's meeting, adding that he believed it was for the serving ministers only.

ODM Director of Communications, Mr Salim Lone, said the two principals could meet Monday afternoon or Tuesday.

Last Friday, Kibaki and Raila agreed to stop discussions on the new Cabinet and instead make further consultations. No date for resumption of talks was set, but the two principals were expected to meet again and revisit the issues as soon as possible.

Raila appealed for patience, saying "coalitions take long to form. In Germany, it took one month. I am optimistic we will reach a consensus".

Raila was addressing journalists soon after meeting Kibaki on Friday where the two deadlocked on issues of portfolio balance and number Cabinet positions.

The stalemate has opened a barrage of criticism, with some politicians led by Eldoret North MP, Mr William Ruto, on calling for a fresh election if Kibaki and Raila failed to agree on the Cabinet composition.

The meeting also comes against a backdrop of fears that the Government could be running short of cash as donors await conclusion of the deal to open the purse strings.

Economists say the sale of the 25 per cent stake in Safaricom was part of Government measures to get funds to finance expenditure, including salaries for civil servants.