allAfrica.com: Kenya: Coalition Government Vows to Hold Together (Page 1 of 2)

President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga read the Riot Act - the Grand Coalition Government must be a working machine that would survive five years. It was the day Kibaki and Raila strove to break the walls of suspicion and silent wars among their members, now crammed up in one Government.

The message on the lip, apart from the portfolio sharing and protocol wars, was, "we are one team!" Kibaki cast himself as President of Kenya, not the PNU leader. Raila said he was the PM of Kenya, not ODM.

The Government was literally under one roof - the President, the PM, the Vice-President, two Deputy Prime Ministers, Ministers, Assistant Ministers and Permanent Secretaries. The agenda on the table was bonding and the formula for sticking together for the next five years.

The leaders of the Party of National Unity and the Orange Democratic Movement, which grudgingly accepted to work together to stop post-election bloodletting, tried to whip their members into line. They called on them to speak in one voice and away from the camera to assure the nation the country was on a reconciliation course.

They also extolled the virtues of collective responsibility as well as dedicated and selfless service to the nation.

The leaders appeared to have shed the protocol confusion between Raila and Vice-President Mr Kalonzo Musyoka. The PM spoke before the President. Kalonzo will oversee the closing ceremony today. The opening session was open to journalists, and then the closed-door phase began where the leaders were expected to speak candidly.

"Let us not forget where we have come from, and the brighter future a new Kenya that we all want to achieve We want Kenya to enjoy a stable, coalition partnership and to achieve real economic and social transformation for all Kenyans spearheaded by this coalition," said Kibaki.

Opening the induction programme that ends today, Kibaki called for integrity, saying those who shall be implicated in corruption must step aside.

The President said there was no room for failure; the coalition arrangement has worked for other countries of the world. He also laid the ground rule; grumbling in public is unacceptable. This he said was undermining the principles of the Grand Coalition Government and sending the wrong signals.

"We are members of one Government, colleagues in Cabinet, and as such we should always feel free to reach out to one another for consultations, instead of commenting on important national issues through the Press," said Kibaki.

Speaking in one voice, he noted, should also be reflected in the transaction of Government business with development partners, especially with regard to public policy.

Kenyans, he said have high expectations and would want to see an end to poverty, ignorance and disease. "Insecurity, inequality and tribalism, are top on the public's agenda. I therefore urge for integrity and passion for excellence among the ministers in handling public affairs," he said.

The President said ministers and other public officers found engaging in corruption would be required to resign to allow for investigation.

"You will be expected to treat Kenyans equally and to ensure that corruption and misuse of public resources does not take place under your watch. In this regard you would also be expected to step aside to allow for investigation, should your names be mentioned adversely with regard to corrupt or other unethical conduct."

All ministers, their assistants and the PSs he said, should familiarise themselves with the Public Officers Ethic Act and the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act, to give better services to the public.

In a reconciliatory mood, Kibaki spoke of the urgent need for national cohesion and collective responsibility on Government matters and policies that have been agreed on by the Cabinet.

"We are leaders at a time of Kenyans' greatest need for patriotic and selfless leadership that will save our country from destruction, heal its wounds and reconcile its people, and give the impetus towards its deserved place in posterity as a great nation," said the President.

He reminded the Cabinet to observe confidentiality of Government business as they swore in their oaths of allegiances last month, when they took up their ministerial positions.

In his speech that mainly dwelt on service delivery, the ministers and their assistants were asked to take parliamentary business seriously and maintain a record attendance and performance.

"It is imperative that you should set standards of attendance and performance during the Tenth Parliament that will surpass those experienced in years," said Kibaki.

web allafrica.com	Enter your search terms	Submit search form
OR subscribers use AllAfrica's premium search engine


Use our pull-down menus to find more stories