TIGblogs TIG | TIGblogs GROUP TIGBLOGS LOGIN SIGNUP
Christabell Opudo's Blog
Christabell Opudo's Blog
Deal offers fresh hope to Kenya
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Many Kenyans had feared the imminent outbreak of renewed violence when peace talks were suspended on Monday but instead there is now fresh hope after the two rival leaders agreed to share power.

Both President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga gave ground under massive international pressure and the intervention of African Union Chairman and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete.

They unveiled a deal that is intended to steer the country towards much-needed reconciliation after allegations of rigging in last December's elections.

However, as chief mediator Kofi Annan said: "The journey is far from over. In fact it is only beginning."

A peaceful destination will only be reached only if Mr Kibaki and Mr Odinga show the political will.

After such a bitter dispute, which has cost 1,500 lives, trust between the two men has been in short supply - this is why it took more than a month of tortuous talks for them to reach a deal.

Hurdles ahead

This will not be the first time that the two leaders have formed a joint government - they did it in 2002 but it lasted barely three years before they fell out.

While Mr Odinga looks set to take up the new post of prime minister, it is not clear who prevails in the event of a disagreement between him and President Kibaki.

If the deal is strong enough to overcome that hurdle, the new optimism will prove well-founded.

All eyes in a country that has been mourning for the past two months now turn to parliament, where MPs convene next Thursday to vote for the National Accord and Reconciliation Act that will usher in these changes.

The first challenge facing the two leaders once the act is operational is to appoint a new cabinet, whose members will be shared out equally.

The violence has left deep ethnic divisions and a new cabinet must be named with a regional balance to appease communities that felt left out in the last administration.

Corruption scandals

Apart from the regional balance, Kenyans are eager to see the parties merge their policies and deliver an equal share of national resources.

Economic disparities lie behind much of the ethnic tension which exploded into violence after the disputed election.

One major policy difference is that of decentralising power and therefore wealth.

This was a key campaign pledge of Mr Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) but not Mr Kibaki's Party of National Unity (PNU).

The coalition partners now have to marry these and other areas of disagreement.

President Kibaki is credited with steering economic growth in his first term in office but corruption thrived within his administration, drawing much criticism from foreign diplomats.

This is yet another hurdle for the new coalition - both sides include people linked with corruption scandals in the past.

Many doubt if the leaders will have the courage to sacrifice them and inject fresh blood into the administration since it is clear some of those tainted by scandal helped fund the campaigns and remain very influential.

Political will?

The talks which gave birth to this new power-sharing arrangement have brought to the fore the influence of hardliners on both sides.

While Mr Kibaki and Mr Odinga may have shaken hands and exchanged pleasantries, observers are sceptical as to whether they will ignore the advice of some of their hardline backers.

But failure to contain their influence may endanger the new coalition.

The power-sharing agreement ends if either partner walks out and this would throw the country back into another phase of uncertainty.

Some argue that the new deal could produce a new breed of leader who would be respected for their political principles and not the wealth they possess, as at present.

But as Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete squarely put at the signing ceremony, it is the political will of the two leaders that remains central if this promise is to become a reality.
Story from BBC NEWS:

February 29, 2008 | 3:45 PM Comments  3 comments

Tags:
You must be logged in to add tags.


Comments

dkaiyo davyk
February 29, 2008 | 8:53 AM
good news
a least its the beginning. i hope all the parties involved have the political will ;like you said its crucal at this moment. its nolonger an issue of satisfying the leader's personal egos and agendas but to work for the betterment of the livelihood of the masses
wakojoel wako-joel
February 29, 2008 | 12:10 PM
Good news for the Neighbours Too
It is indeed of great happiness to the neighbours too mostly Uganda. If I may sound differently here, I believe with no doubt that what my friends in Kisumu, (ODM) stronghold and birth place to Mr. Raila Odinga; told me was that they had sighted Ugandan army in the city which did not sound good to my ears.
They told me as I was in the city that I should not sound Ugandan in the outskirts of the city where I had gone to check on them as well as attend a partners meeting in that great city which holds my thoughts.

For that matter therefore, I think the Ugandan government most especially the sitting President of Uganda Mr. Museveni Yoweri never wanted the great nation of Uganda to be tinted with that bad image of sending the soldiers to kills its immediate neighbours.

On that note, I welcomed the signing of the agreements in Kenya with great joy. This is the country where I have been more than once and I have loved the way people go about their business in the great land.

I f I may rewind my mind about a year ago when I met Christabell in great capital city of Nairobi which sits the Headquarters of UNEP, she told me alot things which still sits in my brain like sunken coin in the ocean of which I still remember and practice.

Therefore, the signing of power sharing was of great gusto to me and my country Uganda as well as the great lakes region.

More thanks go to Mr. Kofi Annan and the team he was working with.
wakojoel wako-joel
February 29, 2008 | 12:17 PM
How African Leaders can learn from the words of Mr Barak Obama
I have been reading some parts of the book that Mr. Barak Obama wrote. He said that "As such I am bound to disappoint some, if not all of them. Which perhaps indicates a second, more intimate theme to this book - namely how I or anybody else in public office, can avoid the pitfalls of fame, the hunger to please, the fear of loss, and thereby retain that kernel of truth, that singular voice within each of us that reminds us of our deepest commitments".

Therefore, based on egocentric tendencies of some of the African leaders, I think they should have this in mind that at any one moment they will have to leave power. The states they rule as a personal property are nations of many people who need to enjoy what they Lord blessed them with. But unfortunately, the leak their own wounds as if they are hungry dogs.

Lets us as youths have the heart of the many who are coming after us.
Christabell's Profile

Christabell's Friends


Latest Posts
UN-HABITAT to the...
Malawi organises its...
Question to Ms....
UN Secretary-General...
Mayors, local...

Monthly Archive
January 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
March 2008
April 2008
June 2008
July 2008
August 2008
November 2008
December 2008

Change Language


Tags Archive
busy horoscope july philipkabiru youthandhealth youthandvolunteering

Filter By Type
Events
Travel
Topics

Friends
'Gbenga Sesan
A Better Community for All (ABC4All)
Abdoul Byukusen
adewole taiwo
Aleza Summit
AMESH
Angel
Angie
AWellEarth.net
Barrack
bk
Brenda Makhanu
Caitlin Leigh Chandler
Celestine
christine k.
Dabesaki
davyk
Deepa
Diana Moreka
Douglas Tigere
Edgar Dearn Makona
Efraim Neto
Emily Karechio
EMMA WAMAE
Erick Ochieng Otieno
eunice wacu Ng'ang'a
Faith Phiri
Frank
George Otieno Ochollah
Geraldine
Grace
Gulalai Ismail
hawa diallo
Henry Namwenda
hluli
javan v. apudo
Jennifer Corriero
Joya Banerjee
judy
Julie
Justin Sekiguchi
Karun Koernig
Ken Auma
Kirsten
Laura Hartstone
LauraK
Lesego Enid Mokone
Lucie
lukhimai linnebank
Marie-Soleil Gonthier
mary nyaguthii kabacia
Michael Furdyk
Miguel Silva
Mohamed Barrie
Muqing
Olumide
Owulezi
Panna Madziga
Patricia Sudi
PEACE-SEEKER
Quacksalver
Rachel M Jacobson
Rebecca Lohman
Reshma Pattni
S.Ojeremen
Sean Amos
Simon MVUNABANDI
Stephen Kasoma
Terri
Topsy
UGIRASHEBUJA Jean Luc
umeh joseph
Vickyday2007
VICTORY ASHAMOLE C
wako-joel
yronn
~ Mostafa Nejati مصطفی نجاتی ~


24900 views
Important Disclaimer