Kenya Stockholm Blog

Statement Of Raila Odinga On Latest Crisis

STATEMENT BY HON. RAILA ODINGA, PRIME MINISTER-DESIGNATE, ON THE CURRENT STATUS OF NEGOTIATIONS ON FORMING THE GRAND COALITION GOVERNMENT

7 April 08

With cries of jubilation and Happy New Years, Kenyans on 28th February began to breathe freely again as the National Accord brokered by Mr. Kofi Annan was signed by President Kibaki and myself. The terror and fear they had been living under at the hands of mobs, militias and government forces was finally over. A few weeks later, Parliament unanimously entrenched the Accord into the Constitution and Laws of Kenya.

But since then, Kenyans have observed with growing dismay and anxiety that not a single concrete agreement has been achieved on any aspect of the new coalition government. Our nation is adrift and without direction, and with each passing day, our problems are mounting.

To overcome this terrible impasse and another looming crisis, our side has gone many extra miles and made an extraordinary number of concessions. Against the strong wishes of our supporters and indeed of all Kenyans, we accepted PNU’s insistence on a bloated 40 member Cabinet. I agreed also to cede some of the most crucial ministries – such as Finance, Defense, Internal Security and Justice and Constitutional Affairs.

-+In exchange, we obtained infrastructural ministries such as Energy, Transport and Roads – which are instrumental in the building of rapid economic growth – as well as Local Government and Foreign Affairs. But in agreeing to this, I indicated that we had reached our irreducible minimum. The response to our magnanimity from the other side has been to retract every agreement we have finalized!

This latest crisis in portfolio balance captures the astonishing lengths PNU is willing to go to ensure that it continues to monopolize power.

On 1st April, President Kibaki’s emissary, Hon George Saitoti, gave me a proposed list of 40 ministries and how they should be divided. The next day, we wrote to the President’s Office rejecting the proposal.

The following day, 3rd April, President Kibaki and I met for two hours and made numerous concrete agreements on portfolio balance that I have just mentioned, which enabled both of us to say publicly that the Cabinet would be announced yesterday (Sunday).

On Saturday, I received from Ambassador Muthaura a letter unilaterally indicating that the Cabinet to be announced would be formed on the basis of an enclosed list of ministries and their allocations that we had rejected on 2nd April! The agreements we reached in our 3rd April meeting were nowhere to be seen.

We were therefore unable to reach any agreement in the six hours of talks yesterday.

Today, in response to a letter I had written to President Kibaki, we received a reply from Ambassador Muthaura side reneging on our previous agreements, as well as the spirit and the letter of the Accord. In PNU’s interpretation, the Constitution grants the President exclusive executive power to run this country on his own, and that these powers supersede all the provisions of the Accord.

The President and I promised the nation yesterday that we would finalize arrangements for the Grand Coalition government, including the naming of the Cabinet. However, PNU’s misconception of the Accord and the principles of democratic governance mean that there was no point in meeting today to conclude discussions on Cabinet formation and the constitution of the government.

We hereby provide correspondence between our two sides which gives details of the issues at stake and our proposals on the way forward. Let me state once again that we are committed to the full and speedy implementation of the National Accord to resolve the crisis gripping our country.

Raila Amolo Odinga
Prime Minister Designate

April 8, 2008 Posted by makozewe | Uncategorized | Leave a Comment

Raila Letters To Kibaki: Cabinet Of 34

7th April 2008
His Excellency Mwai Kibaki, CGH, MP
President of the Republic of Kenya
Office of the President,
P.O. Box 30510,
NAIROBI

Your Excellency,

RE: FORMATION OF THE GRAND COALITION GOVERNMENT

The meeting yesterday adjourned to allow for consultations until this afternoon, after you declined further discussions on portfolio balance and instead insisted on your proposed allocation of ministries.

Our party is deeply concerned that the stalemate over the formation of the Grand Coalition Government is increasing uncertainty and anxiety in the country. It is also escalating the mistrust that we as leaders were expected to eliminate by the establishment of the Grand Coalition.

The National Accord and Reconciliation Act is already in force. It must be understood that ODM and PNU are equal partners in the Grand Coalition. The failure to form the Grand Coalition Government is in fact a continuing breach of the Act and the Constitution.

We have always acted in good faith and conveyed to Your Excellency that the Grand Coalition would be one government. The positions PNU is staking claim to imply that we are forming a government with two cabinets. On the contrary, this is a Grand Coalition of two equal partners sharing executive power on a 50-50 basis.

It is becoming clear to our party that your side is reluctant to honour the spirit and principles of the National Accord and Reconciliation Act. I therefore wish to let you know that the following issues must be resolved in the course of our further consultations on the formation of the Government:

   1. The Current Cabinet

The current cabinet should be dissolved to allow for the formation of a fresh Cabinet in accordance with the Act.

   2. Portfolio Balance

Although we reluctantly conceded to an enlarged cabinet against the wishes of Kenyans, our party now maintains that the Grand Coalition Cabinet should not exceed 34 ministries. Allocations of portfolios must be based on the agreement of 3rd April 2008 in which we agreed that the PNU side nominates appointments in the Finance and Security portfolios and in return, ODM would nominate Ministers to the following portfolios:

· Local Government

· Foreign Affairs

· Transport

· Energy

· Cabinet Affairs

It is important I reiterate that the above represents and remains our Party’s irreducible minimum position. We attach hereto, for your ease of reference, the full ODM Portfolio Balance List, which was delivered to you last Friday.

   3. Structure and Organization of Government

The following must also be agreed upon in advance:

· An acceptable classification of ministries;

· A clear definition of the roles and responsibilities of the Office of the Prime Minister;

· The structure and organization of government, including the rationalisation of the roles of the Head of the Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet;

· Appointment of the Permanent Secretaries;

· Appointment of Ambassadors and High Commissioners; and the

· Appointment of the Chairpersons, Directors and Chief Executives of parastatals, and constitutional offices.

I propose that a Joint Team of four members, two from each side, be constituted to build consensus on these issues within the next three days.

Please confirm your acceptance of the above before the meeting this afternoon.

Yours truly,

Hon Raila Odinga, EGH, MP

Prime Minister-Designate

April 8, 2008 Posted by makozewe | Uncategorized | Leave a Comment

EU Statement On Latest Crisis In Kenya

Brussels, 8 April 2008
8051/08 (Presse 090)
P 044/08

PRESS RELEASE

Subject: Declaration on Kenya

Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on Kenya

The European Union and Kenya’s other international partners welcomed the power-sharing agreement signed by Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga on 28 February. The agreement was an important step towards peace and reconciliation within the framework of the National Dialogue, brokered by the Panel of Eminent African Personalities led by Kofi Annan.

On 2 April, Mr Annan expressed serious concern over the failure to compose and announce a coalition government. The EU shares his concern and urges the parties to maintain the momentum for reconciliation by forming an effective and efficient coalition government as soon as possible that reflects genuine power-sharing between Kenya’s parties. This is a key milestone upon which implementation of the agreement depends.

The EU reiterates its commitment to support meaningful power-sharing and to working with the new Kenyan Government, once it is formed, to put Kenya back on the path to prosperity and stability.

The Candidate Countries Turkey, Croatia* and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and the EFTA countries Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia align themselves with this declaration.

* Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.

April 8, 2008 Posted by makozewe | Uncategorized | Leave a Comment

New Crisis In Kenya: ODM Scandinavia To Issue Statement

ODM Scandinavia will issue a Statement by the end of the week on the on-going crisis in Kenya about the power sharing deal between ODM and PNU. The Statement will be released after a meeting of the Party’s top organ expected towards the end of the week.

A top official of the Party told KSB that the Scandinavian branch has been studying the situation in Kenya very closely and that it will issue a comprehensive statement on the situation by Friday this week.

The official said that the party has not been in a hurry to issue statements over the deadlock because it has been giving the situation time to develop. “A lot of issues have been involved and it could have been premature for ODM Scandinavia to rush with statements”, he said.

In the meantime, Mr. Charles Otieno Owiyo, Organizing secretary of ODM Scandinavia, is in Kenya to consult with the mother Party and to get first hand information about what is happening. Mr. Otieno left Kenya on Friday last week and is expected to give a Report when he returns to Stockholm.

In another development, the Wananchi Pavilion and the ODM Office in Stockholm is currently closed for renovation. The Party has temporarily moved its operations to Nacka until the renovations are completed later this month. This means that ODM’s weekly meetings at the Pavilion have also been relocated and Party members are encouraged to get in touch with Headquarters for an update on weekly meeting places.

Okoth Osewe

April 8, 2008 Posted by makozewe | Uncategorized | Leave a Comment