10 April 2008
Nairobi — Britain Wednesday suggested that some of President Kibaki's supporters surrender their plum Cabinet posts for sharing with their ODM rivals as some diplomats expressed optimism that the coalition government would be named soon.
UK Foreign secretary David Miliband said in a statement that all sides should be prepared to make concessions, "including President Kibaki's supporters ceding some powerful portfolios."
His US counterpart, Ms Condoleezza Rice, said she had spoken separately to President Kibaki and ODM leader Raila Odinga on telephone and that they had assured her of their commitment to ensure the power-sharing deal was effected.
Meanwhile, tension mounted in parts of the country over the delay in naming a coalition cabinet and rioting youths uprooted a section of the railway line from Nairobi to western Kenyain the Kibera slums.
The mob
The railway line was first destroyed on Tuesday but the mob returned Wednesday to do more damage.
Another mob stoned cars plying the Kisumu-Kericho road, but were dispersed by police. A similar incident was reported in Busia Town, but again police managed to clear the road.
There was also evidence that police were prepared for possible crowd trouble, with lorries full of police stationed in Nairobi's city centre and roads leading to Kibera and Mathare slums.
American ambassador Michael Ranneberger, who has engaged in a flurry of shuttle diplomacy between the President and Mr Odinga, said he was sure the coalition Cabinet would be named soon.
Mr Ranneberger said he met President Kibaki and Mr Odinga on Tuesday, and he "came away optimistic about their commitment" to forming a grand coalition government.
"I don't think there is any need to impose sanctions," the envoy said in an answer to a question from reporters at a news conference in Nairobi. Mr Ranneberger said he viewed a 40-member Cabinet as "too large" but added that "sometimes compromises must be made between what is best and what is politically needed."
His optimism was shared by ambassadors from European and North America who met Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka and Cabinet ministers Uhuru Kenyatta and George Saitoti and National Assembly Speaker Kenneth Marende.
Mr Marende, speaking at a service to commemorate the Rwanda genocide, said he was sure there would be a grand coalition Cabinet before Parliament reopens on Tuesday.
President Kibaki spent the better part of Wednesday at his office in Harambee House. He left the office at 3pm.
No statements
Mr Odinga met a Danish diplomat but there was no public statement issued.
ODM spokesman Salim Lone said the President had not responded to their letter proposing the way forward.
"The essential step in the proposal is that a small PNU/ODM group be established, which lays out the essential areas on which there is divergence," he said.
Read comments. Write your own.
Copyright © 2008 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
Wether a cabinet is formed or not we shall be hopping from one crises to another. If you go for another election which was the odm strategy any way the looser wont accept the results because a precedent as been set. The demands of odm was a re run because they knew they had already displaced most of pnu voters on the western side of the country and also managed to intimidate others into silence through distruction of their property and threats of death. Unless GOD comes himself without sending somebody else we are going to sink deeper into this crises.
As a Kenyan I have come to cherish the history of Australia and especially the latest apology for historial injustices committed against the Aborigines. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's apology to indigenous Australians has drawn praise from a strange quarter - the Beverly Hills home of Hollywood legend Kirk Douglas.
In a personally signed letter, the 91-year-old veteran of the silver screen lauded the Prime Minister's "courageous act" of sorry and told of his own political frustrations with the US Government.
"We are in a period of chaos in the world that our children and grandchildren will inherit," he wrote.
.. You are fully aware of the political crisis that we are currently going through with the most recent fear that Kenya could slide into civil war if the Peace Accord of power sharing and portfolio balance in government fails to work...the two principle leaders (President KIBAKI and Prime Minister RAILA) are yet to agree on cabinet list..
The Kenyan crisis goes beyond a flawed electoral process...its is about decades of political impunity by a certain ruling class... it is about a widening socio-economic gap between the few extremely corrupt rich and the majority poor slum dwellers... it borders on historical injustices committed by both the colonial masters (British gov't) and their loyal servants whom they left power to (immoral, selfish African leaders who grabbed all the fertile land and diverted public resources to their own bank accounts in Sweden, US, UK etc
I believe we us a nation can learn alot from the Australian experience... I hope the good leaders there can offer to advise our selfish politicians here so that we do not sink into the same pit...maybe through the embassy in Kenya?
I believe that all it may take to change things in Kenya is a official apology to the oppressed citizens...maybe some form of monetary compensation...We still hope that the situations will not degenerate into anarchy, Kenyans are peace loving citizens pressed between a rock and hard place... Leaders are using the masses to fight their own tribal battles for selfish benefits
How blind can people be not to see that the future lies in accepting each other and living together in peace? In modern political terms this means real sharing of power reflecting the mix of diversity in Kenya... "Running" a ministry is also a wrong terminology. I prefer "being accountable" to the Kenyan people in delivering real and tangible results. If their is no good performance ministers need to be sacked and replaced.
I am wonti a ministerial to eati andi to cover any corrupti misididi and to emploi all offo my tribe. Gifu mi ministiri foro pubriki toireti i make samu mani also.