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Full Cabinet list

Office of the President 

Ministry of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security 
Minister: Prof George Saitoti 
Assistant Ministers: Simon Lesirma and Joshua Orwa Ojode 

Ministry of State for Defence 
Minister: Yusuf Haji 
Assistant Ministers: David Musila and Joseph Nkaisserry 

Office of the Vice President 
Vice President and Minister for Home Affairs: Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka 
Assistant Minister: Lorna Laboso 

Ministry of State for Immigration and Registration of Persons 
Minister: Gerald Otieno Kajwang’ 
Assistant Minister: Francis Baya 

Ministry of State for National Heritage & Culture: 
Minister: William ole Ntimama 
Assistant Minister: Joel Onyancha Omagwa 

Office of the Prime Minister: 
Prime Minister: Raila Amollo Odinga 
Assistant Minister: Alfred Khang’ati 

Ministry of State for Planning, National Development and Vision 2030: 
Minister: Wycliffe Ambetsa Oparanya 
Assistant Minister: Peter Kenneth 

Ministry of State for Public Service: 
Minister: Dalmas Anyango Otieno 
Assistant Minister: Aden Ahmed Sugow 

Office of Deputy Prime Minister and Ministry of Trade: 
Deputy PM and Minister for Trade: Uhuru Kenyatta 
Assistant Minister: James Omingo Magara 

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Ministry of Local Government 
Deputy PM and Minister for Local Government: Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi 
Assistant Minister: Robison Njeru Githae 

Ministry of East African Community 
Minister: Amason Kingi Jeffah 
Assistant Minister: Peter Munya 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
Minister: Moses Wetangula 
Assistant Minister: Richard Momoima Onyonka 

Ministry of Finance 
Minister: Amos Kimunya 
Assistant Minister: Dr. Oburu Oginga 

Ministry of Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs 
Minister: Martha Karua 
Assistant Minister: William Cheptumo Kipkorir 

Ministry of Nairobi Metropolitan Development 
Minister: Mutula Kilonzo 
Assistant Minister: Elizabeth Ongoro Masha 

Ministry of Roads 
Minister: Kipkalya Kones 
Assistant Ministers: Wilfred Machage  and Lee Kinyanjui 

Ministry of Public Works 
Minister: Chris Obure 
Assistant Minister: Dickson Wathika Mwangi 

Ministry of Transport 
Minister: Chirau Ali Makwere 
Assistant Minister: John Harun Mwau 

Ministry of Water and Irrigation 
Minister: Charity Kaluki Ngilu 
Assistant Minister: Mwangi Kiunjuri 

Ministry of Regional Development Authorities 
Minister: Fredrick Omulo Gumo 
Assistant Minister: Judah Katoo ole Metito 

Ministry of Information & Communications 
Minister: Samuel Poghisio 
Assistant Ministers: George Munyasa Khaniri and Dhadho Godhana 

Ministry of Energy 
Minister: Kiraitu Murungi 
Assistant Ministers: Charles Keter and Maalim Mohamud Mohamed

Ministry of Lands 
Minister: Aggrey James Orengo 
Assistant Ministers: Silvester Wakoli Bifwoli and Samwel Gonzi Rai 

Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources 
Minister: John Michuki 
Assistant Ministers: Ramadhan Seif Kajembe and Jackson Kiplagati Kiptanui 

Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife 
Minister: Noah Wekesa 
Assistant Minister: Josphat Koli Nanok 

Ministry of Tourism 
Minister: Mohamed Najib Balala 
Assistant Minister: Cecily Mtito Mbarire 

Ministry of Agriculture 
Minister: William Samoei Ruto 
Assistant Ministers: Japhet Kareke Mbiuki and Gideon Musyoka Ndambuki 

Ministry of Livestock Development 
Minister: Mohamed Abdi Kuti 
Assistant Minister: Bare Aden Duale 

Ministry of Fisheries Development 
Minister: Paul Nyongesa Otuoma 
Assistant Minister: Mohamed Abu Abuchiaba 

Ministry of Development of Northern Kenya and other Arid Lands 
Minister: Ibrahim Elmi Mohamed 
Assistant Minister: Hussein Tarry Sasura 

Ministry of Cooperatives Development 
Minister: Joseph Nyagah 
Assistant Minister: Linah Jebii Kilimo 

Ministry of Industrialisation 
Minister: Henry Kiprono Kosgey 
Assistant Minister: Ndiritu Murithi 

Ministry of Housing 
Minister: Peter Soita Shitanda 
Assistant Minister: Bishop Margaret Wanjiru Kariuki 

Ministry of Special Programmes 
Minister: Dr. Naomi Namsi Shabani 
Assistant Minister: Mohamed Muhamud Ali 

Ministry of Gender and Children Affairs 
Minister: Esther Murugi Mathenge 
Assistant Minister Atanas Manyala Keya 

Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation 
Minister: Beth Wambui Mugo 
Assistant Minister: Dr. James Ondicho Gesami 

Ministry of Medical Services 
Minister: Prof. Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o 
Assistant Minister: Danson Buya Mungatana 

Ministry of Labour 
Minister: John Kiyonga Munyes 
Assistant Minister: Sospeter Ojamaa Ojamong’ 

Ministry of Youth and Sports 
Minister: Dr. Helen Jepkemoi Sambili 
Assistant Ministers: Wavinya Ndeti and Kabando wa Kabando 

Ministry of Education 
Minister: Samson Kegeo Ongeri 
Assistant Ministers: Prof. Patrick Ayiecho Olweny and Andrew Calist Mwatela 

Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology 
Minister: Dr. Sally Jepngetich Kosgey 
Assistant Ministers: Kilemi Mweria and Asman Abongotum Kamama 

Office of the Attorney General 
Attorney General: Amos Wako

IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN A “COME, let us reason together” moment.

Instead what I saw with the  unveiling of the new grand coalition Cabinet was “come, let us eat together”.

Just take a casual look at who is serving in the “new” Cabinet and the most striking thing is that it is largely a recycling of the same old faces.

President Kibaki could not be persuaded to drop a large number of characters who add absolutely no value to the Cabinet and remain in race just because they are old allies.

As for Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who is forever trumpeting change, reform and fresh, new beginnings, it is nothing less than scandalous that he was so happy to bring aboard some of the most disreputable faces of the Nyayo kleptocracy.

There is absolutely nothing in place to suggest that this new arrangement represents anything other than the political elite putting aside their differences to continue business as usual.

On both the PNU and ODM halves of the Cabinet are well known thieves, plunderers and ethnic warlords.

I suppose there had to be concessions if an all-inclusive government was to be formed so that Kenya can get back to normalcy.

A monstrosity of a bloated Cabinet was one of the things many of us grudgingly accept if that was the price to be paid for a return to peace and stability.

But for the political classes, I suspect return to normalcy is not merely about getting the country back on even keel, but re-establishing opportunities for official rape, looting and plunder.

Is this the Cabinet that will fight corruption and drive meaningful reform? I highly doubt it. It is only in very few countries where corruption is accepted as a perk of leadership that one would end up with the kind of Cabinet we have been saddled with.

We will not have one team pointing fingers at the other over the Goldenberg scandal and the other countering with accusations on the Anglo Leasing scandal. Goldenberg and Anglo Leasing are in coalition!

Just looking at the mug shots in the papers yesterday, all I saw was a gallery of rogues. Other than the beneficiaries and architects of Anglo Leasing and Goldenberg, I spotted a fellow notorious for one of the biggest and fastest corporate plunders in Kenyan history. A columnist once described as a genius anyone who could bankrupt such a rich corporation in so short a time.

Another was well-known in past life for shaking down road construction companies for colossal sums, funds, of course, which were recovered by shortcuts in construction, and hence Kenya’s despicable road network.

I SEE A FELLOW WHO PULLED OFF one of the most audacious land-grabbing scams around, getting himself allocated a section of a road in the capital city and promptly putting the title deed up as security for a bank loan. The bank, obviously, could not recover anything when the fellow neglected to pay back the loan.

And that’s just one project.

There is another crook who grabbed for himself a prime chunk of a City Council parking lot and sold it to a State institution for 10 times its real value.

There is also another who managed to “acquire” at a throwaway price land being sold by a State corporation, the end result being that the corporation was unable to raise the money it needed to pay off retrenched workers, who more than a decade later are wallowing in poverty.

Then there are all those fellows who engineered the phenomenon in Kenya we call ethnic clashes that have since come to haunt us at every election.

We also have figures very closely linked to criminal outfits that have also become a part of our cycles of electoral violence.

That is the disreputable cast supposed to lead Kenya to the next level of development? We might as well bring in the Mafia to run the government.

One of the hallmarks of the Kibaki presidency was the amount of leeway he allowed ministers to run their own show. That was a refreshing change from the command and control of the Nyayo era where every little decision had to be referred to State House.

Quite a number of ministers, definitely, made a mark when given a free hand, and that was seen in improved services and transformation of some parastatals. But it also allowed the emergence of fiefdoms and little centres of corruption.

Now with many more ministries, and with an expansion in the number of dubious characters in the Cabinet, the situation could get out of control.

I, therefore, suggest that President Kibaki and Premier Odinga forget all this delegation business and keep their ministers on a tight leash.

If they were happy enough to burden us with ministers they know very well will not keep their fingers off  the till, then it becomes their responsibility to keep a keen watch on the fellows.

Since it will be impossible to police every single minister, then the next best alternative is simply to make sure that no minister is in a position to steal.

Let the dishonourable men and women keep their limousines, flags and bodyguards, but otherwise let their roles be strictly ceremonial.

What we need is an efficient and professional civil service to run things.

by Macharia Gaitho, Daily Nation, Nairobi, 15 April 2008

MPs Tuesday amended the Constitution to create the post of Prime Minister and two deputies.

President Kibaki later signed the Bill into law, making ODM leader Raila Odinga the Prime Minister-Designate.

Also passed was the National Reconciliation Accord signed by President Kibaki and Mr Odinga on February 28. The accord ended two months of violence in which over 1,200 people were killed and 350,000 others displaced from their homes.

On Tuesday, the MPs voted 200 to zero to pass the Constitution of Kenya Amendment Bill without amending it.

A new coalition Government is to be formed between PNU and ODM. The two parties will share Cabinet positions on a 50:50 basis.

The Executive arm of Government will now comprise the President, Vice President, Prime Minister, two deputy prime ministers and Cabinet ministers.

The Prime Minister will have authority to coordinate and supervise the execution of the functions and affairs of the Government.

On Tuesday, President Kibaki and Mr Odinga sat next to each other as MPs gave their overwhelming support to the amendment.

President Kibaki flew from Kiganjo in Nyeri, where he had presided over the passing out parade for new police recruits and joined MPs in the House.

In his contribution to the debate, the President said the Bills will lay the foundation for building a new Kenya. This was the first time in Kenya’s history that a sitting President contributed to a debate on the floor of the House.

The President occupied his seat as Leader of Government Business, meaning he could also be asked questions by MPs.

Mr Odinga who had occupied his position on the opposition benches joined the President on the Government front benches, swapping places with Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka who briefly sat on the opposition benches.

President Kibaki urged Kenyans to take advantage of the newly found unity to write a new constitution that would propel the country to prosperity.

Mr Odinga said many Kenyans had great expectations that the power-sharing deal would signal an end to the challenges facing the country.

Not stomach

“The country was degenerating and we could not stomach what was happening. We therefore had to make a decision fast despite pressure from our supporters who urged us to remain firm,” he said.

The constitutional amendment was moved by Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Martha Karua and seconded by Ugenya MP James Orengo.

Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka stood immediately after the Bill was put to question and stated that jurisprudence should not be allowed to stand in the way of Kenyans living peacefully.

He said that the Constitution Amendment Bill was a proposed law that was a must for all MPs to pass.He reminded the House that the PNU side had agreed to support the Bill and even withdraw anticipated amendments to the law.

Mr Musyoka urged the House to pass the Bill quickly to provide an environment in which displaced people could return to their homes.

“We hope they will all see the mood in this House… and prepare to go home,” the VP said, and praised President Kibaki and Mr Odinga for working out a peaceful solution at Kenya’s hour of need.

“Now, I am a very proud Kenyan,” he said.

Sabatia MP Musalia Mudavadi told the House that the country had boldly taken steps into a new territory of seeking solutions to hitherto sticky issues that politicians had failed to agree on.Those issues, he said, were the democratic concept of power-sharing and the yet to solved comprehensive review of the Constitution.

“We have laid a foundation, we have broken into new territory and as a nation, we can now begin to talk about concluding the Constitution review in 12 months,” he said. Mr Mudavadi said the painful truth had finally dawned on Kenyans that no one group or community was greater than the others.

“We all now know that we need each other and nobody is superior,” he said. However, he said that internally displaced people were still doubtful of the Accord and challenged the House to convince them by unanimously voting for the Bill.

He urged all MPs to take risks and venture into the unknown world of having a PM’s post, stating that small hiccups that were popping up in PNU and ODM should not be allowed to take course.

At 3.20pm, Speaker Kenneth Marende thwarted the efforts of Mutito MP Kiema Kilonzo (ODM-K) to bring to a closure debate on the Bill stating that more members wanted to contribute.

He reminded the House that a Constitutional amendment was rushed through the House in 1982 and the country paid dearly for the next 10 years until Section 2A was repealed.

“At this point in time, you are out of order. More members want to contribute to the Bill because this is a historic moment for the House,” he said.

National Security minister George Saitoti argued that the Bill presented a chance for members to state the truth that will pave way for national reconciliation.

“I know there are some members here who do not want to hear what I am saying. If indeed they are, shame on them. This is the moment to speak the truth.”Again, Speaker Marende stopped Chepalungu MP Isaac Ruto (ODM) from cutting short Prof Saitoti.

He ordered: “Can we hear Prof Saitoti? Mr Ruto, you will get your time to speak.”

Prof Saitoti said he had referred to the sensitive issue of violence because once the Bill was passed, it would mark the beginning of a new era for all Kenyans.

The Internal Security minister urged the House to resolve that all displaced people should return to their homes.

“We should stay firm and say that all people must return to their farms. Some of us will have to recant the statements we issued before,” he said.

Mvita MP Najib Balala (ODM) said the passage of the Bill marked the beginning of a journey to change from the presidential system to a parliamentary one.

“This Bill is not about President Kibaki and Raila. It is not even about people getting positions. It is about building a system that can accommodate all,” he said.

His contribution was briefly interrupted by the entry of the President into the chambers at 3.41pm escorted by Government Chief Whip George Thuo and Mr Kilonzo.Given that he was attending the session as the Othaya MP, President Kibaki was not accompanied by his bodyguards. They were left outside the chambers. He walked in and took the seat of the Leader of Government Business, which usually is occupied by the VP.

Said Mr Balala as a sign of welcoming the historic attendance by President Kibaki: “This is historic and we welcome you, your Excellency.”

As Mbooni MP Mutula Kilonzo (ODM-K) took to the floor to contribute at 3.45pm, Mr Odinga moved from the seat of the Official Leader of the Opposition to the Government side to greet the President. He sat in between President Kibaki and the VP.

MPs extended debate late into the night before passing the second Bill on the National Accord.

Daily Nation, Nairobi, 19 March 2008

Mystery surrounds the disappearance of three files containing vital information on the December 27 General Election.

The files went missing on Monday when a group of activists stormed into an Electoral Commission of Kenya meeting in Kilifi.

On Tuesday, it emerged that files went missing when the group confronted ECK chairman Samuel Kivuitu and other commissioners at the Sun ‘N’ Sand Beach Resort.

The activists were demanding that the commissioners resign to pave way for investigations into claims of election irregularities. However, Mr Kivuitu has said his team would not step down before presenting its side of the story to an independent review committee set to start its work by Saturday.

It is believed that the missing files contain crucial information about the tallying of the presidential votes in some provinces.

Their contents include Mr Kivuitu’s comments about his commission’s preparedness to conduct the elections.

Police spent the better part of Monday evening searching for the documents in the hall in which the activists were also meeting at the resort.

And Tuesday, Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Martha Karua asked civil society activists to steer clear of the electoral commission.

Unjustifiable

“It was unjustifiable for members of the civil society to storm the Electoral Commission meeting the way they did,” she said in a telephone interview.

She said some of those who stormed the ECK meeting had been parliamentary candidates in the December elections while others were “crusaders for certain political parties”.

The minister urged the public and activists to give the Independent Review Committee a chance to carry out its duties.

The team is this week expected to start investigating allegations of irregularities during last year’s elections and give recommendations on how to avoid such pitfalls in future.

“It is true that the commission could be having its own problems, but it has continued to discharge its duties in a responsible manner and the result is the 204 members of Parliament,” she said.

Search rooms

On Tuesday, attempts to search the activists’ rooms were thwarted when the group denied the officers access, demanding search warrants.

“The police demanded they search our rooms, but we declined because we know they are crafty,” said Mr Jeff Birundi of Name and Shame Corruption Networks Campaign.

Meanwhile, seven activists from Mombasa were arrested and about 40 others dispersed when they tried to present a memorandum to Mr Kivuitu.

The four men and three women who included Muslims for Human Rights coordinator Hussein Khalid and Youth Agenda leader Evans Gachie, were arrested when they defied police orders to disperse.

They waved placards denouncing ECK commissioners and demanding that the commission be disbanded for allegedly failing Kenyans during last year’s General Election whose results were marred by allegations of irregularities.

Later, Mr Jacob Muoga, secretary-general of the Coast Civil Society Congress, protested against the arrests. In a statement, he said the activists had a constitutional right to express their opinion.

After the Monday incident,  Kilifi OCPD Nehemiah Langat confirmed that some files containing vital information had gone missing. “We are searching for the ECK files that we understand the commission has lost,” he told Nation.

He did not, however, disclose the type of information contained in the files.

As the search went on, Ms Ann Njogu, the executive director of the Centre for Rights’ Education and Awareness said: “If indeed the commissioners were in possession of the files, how did they get access to them yet the chairman is on record that they needed a court order to access the documents? When did they obtain the order?”

However, Attorney-General Amos Wako in January said that a court order was not necessary to peruse the documents.

Begin investigations

But according to Ms Njogu, the commissioners were on a mission to frustrate the efforts of the Independent Review Committee that was scheduled to begin its investigations into the disputed presidential election results on Saturday.

Ms Njogu vied for the Kamukunji parliamentary seat, but results for the elections were nullified over alleged irregularities. The matter is pending in court.

Daily Nation, Nairobi, 12 March 2008

The BBC has learnt of allegations of state-sanctioned violence in Kenya during the turmoil that followed last December’s disputed presidential poll.

Sources allege that meetings were hosted at the official residence of the president between the banned Mungiki militia and senior government figures.

The aim was to hire them as a defence force in the Rift Valley to protect the president’s Kikuyu community.

The government denied the allegations, calling them “preposterous”.

“No such meetings took place at State House or any government office,” government spokesman Alfred Mutua told the BBC.

He said the government had been cracking down on the sect for the last year, arresting their leaders.

“There’s no way the president or any government official would meet openly or even in darkness with the Mungiki,” he said.

Gangs with machetes

The allegations come as parliament prepares to open on Thursday, laying the ground for a new coalition government.

Although parliament’s focus will be on healing ethnic divisions and creating a coalition government - allegations of state involvement with a banned Kikuyu militia, known as Mungiki, will not go ignored, the BBC’s Karen Allen in Nairobi says.

She says there is growing suspicion that some of the violence that led to 1,500 people being killed and hundreds of thousands displaced was orchestrated by both sides of the political divide.

The BBC source, who is a member of the Kikuyu tribe and who is now in hiding after receiving death threats, alleged: “Three members of the gang met at State House… and after the elections and the violence the militias were called again and they were given a duty to defend the Kikuyu in Rift Valley and we know they were there in numbers.”

On the weekend of 25 January, the Rift Valley towns of Nakuru and then Naivasha were the focus of the some of the worst post-election violence.

Eyewitnesses spoke of non-Kikuyu homes being marked, then gangs with machetes - who they claim were Mungiki - attacked people who were from other ethnic groups.

Sources inside the Mungiki have told the BBC that it was a renegade branch of the outfit that was responsible for violence, not them.

A policeman who was on duty at the time, who has spoken to the BBC on condition of anonymity, has also pointed to clear signs of state complicity.

He alleges that in the hours before the violence in Nakuru, police officers had orders not to stop a convoy of minibus taxis, called “matatus”, packed with men when they arrived at police checkpoints.

“When we were there… I saw about 12 of them [matatus] packed with men,” he said.

“There were no females… I could see they were armed.

“We were ordered not to stop the vehicles to allow them to go.”

But Mr Mutua said that the government deployed the military to deal with the Kikuyu youth who had tried to take the law into their own hands.

“The Kenyan government… used helicopters to drive them away, arrested them and actually got to kill quite a few of them torching houses,” he said.

“The government stamped on them immediately.”

The allegations come at a time of growing concern that there was pre-planned violence on both sides of the political fence, in the aftermath of Kenya’s disputed election result.

The International Crisis Group has already raised such concerns and Human Rights Watch is expected to publish its report making similar claims shortly.

There are plans to establish a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the coming weeks to examine claims of election violence.

The allegations are likely to be among the themes investigated by a commission created to address the issue of post-election skirmishes.

Story from BBC NEWS, Published: 2008/03/05

Kenya’s recent political crisis attracted massive international attention.

What does this interest mean? Is Kenya unique in the global context? What is special about Kenya in Africa? Is there something historically extraordinary about Kenya in the Black experience?

Kenya is part of the cradle of the human species. Our species originated in Eastern Africa — many fossils have been discovered in the Great Rift Valley.

Since Kenya and Tanzania are probably where the human species originated, the two countries are probably also where many human institutions began to evolve.

About a thousand years ago, the two countries started developing what was destined to become Black Africa’s most successful indigenous language, Kiswahili. Within Africa’s own linguistic diversity, Kiswahili is the fastest growing language. Originating along the coast of the two countries. Kiswahili has now spread to Uganda, Zaire, Rwanda, Burundi, Mozambique, Malawi, and elsewhere.

Kenya is also unique within Africa. It was the first Black African country to follow the American example of waging a war of independence against long-established British colonial rule. The Americans did it from 1776 and Kenyans did it from 1952.

Paradoxically, Kenya’s ‘George Washington,’ Jomo Kenyatta, waged the war from behind bars. The British locked him up at the beginning of the rebellion after a sham trial. In prison, Kenyatta was more potent than outside.

Thanks to the Mau Mau, Kenya became the first British colony with a large white settler community to win Black majority rule. It was the first British settler colony in Africa to get away from white ‘settlerdom’.

The Mau Mau was Black Africa’s first successful war of liberation. And Mau Mau fighters were the most self-reliant of all major guerrilla movements of Africa since the Second World War. They fought without Soviet missiles, Cuban soldiers or Chinese guns. All that they had were basic traditional instruments of warfare.

The Mau Mau may have been militarily defeated, but it was a classic victory of the vanquished. It broke Britain’s imperial will.

Kenyatta set another far-reaching and intriguing precedent. He set the grand precedent of Africa’s short memory of hate.

The British imprisoned Kenyatta as a ‘leader unto darkness and death.’ But he lived to be the country’s founding President and, ironically, Kenya’s leading Anglophile.

He even published a book , Suffering without Bitterness, setting in motion a new tradition of Africa’s short memory of hate.

In years to come, Black Zimbabweans witnessed Ian Smith’s transition from the architect of the 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence that unleashed a war that cost thousands of African lives. Yet, Smith remained a free man in Black-ruled Zimbabwe and even sat as a bona fide Member of Parliament, insulting President Robert Mugabe.

Nelson Mandela followed suit. He spent 27 of his best years in prison, having been convicted by white courts. In the end, Mandela embarked upon an unbridled mission of racial reconciliation in South Africa, another illustration of Africans’ short memory of hate.

Kenya is an Indian Ocean power which for so long acted as if it was an Atlantic power. The twin Atlantic pulls were Britain and the US. Kenya subordinated her Indian Ocean loyalties to her Atlantic friends.

Support Black aspirations

In 1960 Kenya awakened John F Kennedy to America’s responsibilities in Africa. In 1960-61, Tom Mboya successfully negotiated with John Kennedy for the airlift of Kenyan students who had succeeded in getting admission to US universities but could not afford air ticket.

“Soapy” Williams articulated for the Kennedy Administration the principle of ‘Africa is for the Africans.’ He had been offended by the Kenyan white settlers’ objection to the slogan of ‘Africa for Africans,’ and helped to set a trend in America to support Black aspirations in Africa.

As a young graduate student at Columbia University, I met Martin Luther King in New York City in 1961. We discussed Kenya, including Kenya’s second most celebrated leader at that time, Tom Mboya. It later deeply pained me that assassins’ bullets killed both King and Mboya.

Years later, US President Jimmy Carter included Kenya in his strategy of a Rapid Deployment Force in defence of the oil routes and the Arabian and Persian oil reserves. After September 11, 2001, George Bush enlisted Kenya in the US ‘war on terrorism.’

The beginning of a military American presence in Kenya has been in the making as a result. Kenya is not yet a US military base but American naval ships have been stopping at Mombasa almost regularly.

One of the most controversial pro-Western moves by the Kenyan government was the support given to the Israeli raid on a neighbouring African country: the Israeli Entebbe raid of July 1976. Israeli air force commandoes raided Entebbe in order to free Jewish hostages caught in a Palestinian hijack of an Air France flight.

Kenya facilitated both the Israeli approach to Entebbe and its exit. In addition to being a refuelling stopover, Nairobi provided medical facilities for the rescued Israeli hostages. Saving Israelis’ lives probably cost at least 100 lives in Uganda.

Kenya paid a price for its pro-Israeli orientation. The Norfolk Hotel in Nairobi was subsequently bombed in 1980 by a pro-Palestinian Arab. Many Arabs had concluded that Kenya was not really neutral in the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Was Kenya supporting Israel or the United States? We may never know for certain. But one measure of love is what one is willing to give up for it. If Kenya loved justice, and therefore facilitated the Entebbe raid, it was not cost-free. Lives of innocent Ugandan neighbours were sacrificed.

Kenya continues to be a regional focus in Eastern Africa. It is the largest economy in the sub-region. Until the violence broke, it was the most stable state in the greater Horn of Africa. Until then, Kenya was also the closest East African country to genuine democratisation.

The misfortunes due to disputed elections are probably the worst blow to the country since independence, but it stands a chance of healing. Kenya may even recover its pre-eminence in pan-global affairs.

by Ali Mazrui, The Standard, Nairobi, 6 March 2008

The agreement on Thursday between President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga to share power is historical.

The substratum of the agreement is that Raila will have the authority to appoint half the Cabinet. This is the first time in the country’s history that two leaders, who probably loathe one another, jointly exercise executive power. We have begun a cohabitation arrangement between two unloving partners. But who said partners in a relationship must be crazy about each other?

This arrangement provides an opportunity for Kenyans to compare and contrast the people the two leaders pick for the Cabinet.

Among the things Kenyans will look at are qualifications, age and gender balance.

They will also want to see who appoints a ‘clean’ and ethnically balanced Cabinet.

For his entire political life, Raila has fought to reform Government through fair and foul means.

He endlessly fought for a limited liberal and accountable Government. He fought against corruption and tribalism. He has championed the rights of the weak, the marginalised and the powerless. He has also been a political prisoner.

Undoubtedly, Raila has a long illustrious political career as a rebel. For the last 25 years, he has been fighting a Government in power either from the streets or in Cabinet.

He was rarely comfortable with any regime, including those he served as minister.

The power deal will therefore take Raila to hitherto uncharted waters. The ministers he appoints will be revealing in four important ways.

First, through his appointees, Kenyans will know whether Raila is merely a smooth talking wily politician who tells the masses what they want to hear. They will also want to know whether he genuinely believes in the principles he has championed for three decades.

Second, will he, like Kibaki and Moi, appoint ministers to reward them for loyalty, or will he tap into the huge potential his party provides? This is important because we will know whether Raila will conduct business as usual or will break from the past.

Third, he is one of the few politicians free from allegation or complicity in grand corruption. On the few occasions he was in Government, he ran ‘clean’ ministries and has a proud record against graft.

One of the effective tools he used against Moi and Kibaki in past campaigns was to show Kenyans how enmeshed both administrations were in grand corruption. He has talked the talk. The time to walk the talk has come.

Chance to stand up and be counted

Many ODM MPs have good credentials and a clean record. Will Raila show by deeds that his portion of Cabinet — to quote former British Prime Minister Tony Blair — will be free of sleaze and whiter than white? Or will he reward influential individuals, even those accused of involvement in graft?

Four, through his choice of Cabinet, he will show both his game plan in the coalition and his strategy for another bid at the presidency.

Undoubtedly, Raila’s choice of Cabinet will force him out of the closet to stand up and be counted.

So how will he fare? Raila is both a pragmatic and a conviction politician. He will not forget the core base of his support, but if pragmatism and conviction clash, he would probably stick to his conviction. He recently said he would join a coalition government only if it had a huge reform agenda. Politicians like Mr James Orengo and Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o have been in the reform trenches with him all along. Like him, they have a track record for reform, the fight against graft and a limited and accountable government.

Raila’s next steps will tell Kenyans whether his reform rhetoric was just that or a rue conviction for change.

Raila, in his appointments, will loudly tell Kenyans whether, like Kibaki, he loathes younthful talent or treasures them. Will he be brave enough to appoint men and women in their 30s and 40s or will he find more comfort in those age groups he looks up to as uncles?

ODM has also more than its share of MPs who served under Moi in various capacities. This group proved invaluable to Raila’s efforts in the elections. But some have heavy baggage. In a clean administration, they would be untouchable political lepers. Will Raila play real politic or seek refuge in beliefs and principles?

During campaigns, Raila pledged to form a ministry that will deal with the torturous history of North Eastern Kenya. Now that he has the power to appoint a minister for such portfolio will he keep his pledge? And Muslims…

A second Prime Minister in independent Kenya, with authority to appoint half of the Cabinet, gives Kenyans the first opportunity to interrogate the enigma called Raila.

by Abdulahi Ahmednasir, The Standard, Nairobi, 2 March 2008

The signing on Thursday of a historic governance agreement to resolve the crisis sparked off by last year’s disputed presidential election marks the beginning of a hopeful but challenging period for Kenya.

Coming at a time armed militia were reported to be preparing for renewed violence should the talks collapse, it will be remembered as the moment the nation stepped back from the brink of a precipice.

It is also reminder that consensus is possible on the most difficult of issues.

Hopefully, we shall never have to go through the harrowing experiences of the last two months before turning to dialogue and reason.

Implementing the agreement and resolving some of the other challenges still facing the country will not be easy. Neither will healing the wounds caused by the divisive campaign, the election and its aftermath.

It is our most fervent hope, notwithstanding the hardline rhetoric of the negotiation period, that President Kibaki, Mr Raila Odinga and their political allies are all committed not just to the letter of the agreement but also to its spirit. It will simply not do to have covert or overt attempts to subvert the agreement by seeking ways to claw back concessions or press for advantages.

We strongly urge Members of Parliament to rally behind the deal for the benefit of the people. The international community and the people of Kenya should also throw their weight behind the agreement and help this country’s political leadership succeed in leading us back to normalcy. As Dr Kofi Annan said on Thursday, let healing begin.

The Standard, Nairobi, 29 Feb 2008

The Kenyan people have remained anxious for a political settlement from the ongoing mediation talks and what could still prove a defining political moment for this country.

The Kofi Annan-led talks appear to be making slow but certain progress, in an environment of high public expectation.

The truth, however, is that a deal has remained as elusive as a mirage with the expected conclusion date shifting from one week to another.

We are said to be all geniuses, thanks to the power of hindsight. However, in this column we did not need hindsight to make out that the talks would take longer than most people imagined. Kenyans, however, wish that a settlement were reached at the earliest opportunity.

What then are the compelling factors at play at these talks?

Firstly, a struggle for power and control of resource distribution and, secondly, an environment that is captive of vested interests.

A third factor at play is egocentrics and delusions of grandeur and, fourthly, the question of whether the future of the nation and its people does actually matter to these people.

Finally, everyone is watching and listening to everything while seeking the slightest opportunity for any tactical manoeuvrings.

In the power struggle, The Public Watchdog’s instinct remains that the settlement horizon requires more diplomatic tactical manoeuvrings by the arbitrator and continued local and international pressure to convince both sides to agree on an enduring settlement proposition.

Recently, in this column, we cautioned that while a political settlement must be reached as soon as possible, a realistic timeframe was imperative as the stakes would rise as the settlement’s details are being worked out. Thus, building unrealistic expectations and committing to over-ambitious timeframes amount to creating a time-bomb waiting to explode with far-reaching consequences.

Even today, the body language of those close to the reins of power suggests that the impasse could be sustained beyond next month.

Secondly, the ultimate outcome of any negotiation must be widely acceptable, not merely by the negotiators or their principals, but the majority of the stakeholders.

The fundamental question begs: Who are the stakeholders in the ongoing negotiations? Certainly not President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga as many now consider. They might be the two principals claiming a stake on leadership but the two leaders’ interests must always be aligned with those of the people.

In any event, no matter what could be at stake, their personal interests cannot possibly override those of the electorate, the people, the nation, the region and international interests.

The major stakeholders are indubitably the Kenyan people and the Kenyan nation, which has the ultimate right to agree or disagree a governance structure.

As a matter of right to Kenyans, national resource allocation, including human capital, must of necessity be made equitable regardless of who holds the reins of power in a truly shared governance structure.

Thirdly, Kenyans and the international community are now an emerging environment that is captive of vested interests as well as egocentrics and delusions of grandeur. It is such an environment that could serve as a major threat to peace and national stability.

It is the vested interests of those who feel like they stand to gain or lose in any power sharing arrangement that could undermine the mediation talks.

At stake are the new positions created in a power sharing agreement, the interests to be dispensed on one side and those to be accommodated on the other. The important factor must certainly be the need to create a power-sharing framework that serves as critical governance pillars, participatory government with checks and balances for posterity.

Any structure agreed upon must not be seen as serving the interests of individuals but accommodating wider public interests today and in future. Thus, any self-catered interests must be subordinate to national interests.

No political leader worthy of his position — whether in power or hoping to ascend to power — should allow themselves to be seen as suffering from what could be considered as delusions of grandeur.

Finally, it might appear that the country is returning to normalcy but the situation remains fluid and cannot be equated to a “business as usual” position.

We have seen so far how fragile our people’s fortunes can be and as a nation, we should nurture peace and create governance structures to endure peace and coexistence as a people today, tomorrow and in the future.

Thus, if we are creating a position of Executive Prime Minister today or leaving Executive powers in the Presidency, it must not be intended or seen to serve Raila or preserve Kibaki in the Presidency. It must accommodate current and future interests of Kenya.

Needless to state, it has now become crystal clear that the vested interests that tried to stop sharing of executive powers during the last constitutional dispensation are now wishing they had supported the people’s desire.

As stated previously in this column, the weighty issues of power sharing structure demands methodical mechanisms and legal instruments to facilitate a workable governance structure.

Parliament must be at the centre of determining the power structure and in the ultimate arbitration, the people of Kenya could be called upon to decide such structures through a national referendum.

The decision cannot be about the past though the past serves as a useful lesson on deciding and planning for the future.

This is a matter of great public interest!

The Public Watchdog, The Standard, Nairobi, 26 Feb 2008

The search for a political settlement out of the post election crisis stalled after the Government side walked back several steps, changed positions on issues already agreed and threw the talks into a spin.

The Standard reliably learnt that when the talks resumed after an eventful weekend break, the Party of National Unity (PNU) made it clear it was no longer interested in sharing power. Last night, the task of making the hard choices appeared to lie with President Kibaki and bitter rival Mr Raila Odinga.

“I believe that the Panel of Eminent African Personalities working with the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation has done its work. I’m now asking the party leaders, Hon Raila Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki to do theirs,” a statement issued by Dr Kofi Annan, the lead mediator at the talks after meeting both leaders, read.

Worded in a manner that left no doubt as to the depth of his disappointment, the statement intoned: “After four hours of intense negotiations this morning, the negotiating team made almost no progress toward reaching an agreement on governance, despite the fact that they had the entire weekend to consult on their positions”.

Before suspending the talks on Monday, the UN-backed mediator said he had concluded the teams were incapable of resolving the outstanding issues.

It was also unclear what time, if at all, the talks will resume today after scattering at lunch time Monday.

New demands

The threat of mass action also loomed large after ODM Secretary-General Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o formally notified the Commissioner of Police Maj-Gen Hussein that the party shall hold nationwide peace meetings on Thursday.

To illustrate its point, the Government side roundly disowned an earlier document that reflected common ground with protagonists Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) on a number of divisive issues in a power sharing arrangement.

It had suggested a closing of ranks between the feuding groups and offered a ray of hope to millions of Kenyans desperate for a solution out of the crippling crisis.

But a new draft tabled by PNU negotiators led by Justice minister Ms Martha Karua, Mr Moses Wetangula (Foreign Affairs), Prof Sam Ongeri (Education) and Mbooni MP Mr Mutula Kilonzo wound the clock back on the talks.

By pushing for the position of a non-executive prime minister, the new document, a copy of which The Standard obtained, left no doubt that the Government would not be sharing power with anyone just yet.

It meant that even though a Prime Minister’s Office and that of two deputies would still be created, the holder would be just another minister to be hired and fired at the discretion of the President, who remains chief executive and will continue to enjoy unfettered powers.

The draft by the Government proposes the establishment of prime minister and deputy prime ministers posts through an Act of Parliament.

And it puts them where PNU wants: “Nothing in this Act will confer on any office bearer powers granted to other member of the Executive as provided in the Constitution or any other written law”, effectively ensuring the positions are non-executive.

In addition, the prime minister, in the exercise of the functions of his office shall be accountable to the President.

In the proposed Act 2008 made available to The Standard, the President shall appoint the prime minister and deputy prime ministers among the ministers of Government.

But in the Draft National Accord and Reconciliation Act 2008 prepared by the Legal Working Group on Governance, the person appointed as prime minister shall be an elected member of the National Assembly, who is the parliamentary leader of the political party that has the largest number of members in the House.

According to the proposed Act, the Government appears to be toying with the idea of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), where the President has the full discretion of whom he wants to be in his Government without consulting anybody.

The agreement reached last week states that in the formation of a coalition government, the persons to be appointed as ministers and Assistant ministers from the political parties that are partners on the coalition other than the President’s party shall be nominated by the parliamentary leader of the party in the coalition.

It added that the representation of the political parties of the coalition in Government shall be equal and shall take into account the principles of portfolio balance, meaning that no party would hog all the powerful ministries or positions.

On the establishment of ministry or ministries, PNU proposed in their Act that the President “may by a notice in the Gazette establish such ministry or ministries as may appear to him necessary for the better carrying out of the responsibilities vested in him…”

With this, the quest for a “real power sharing deal and not an illusion”, as advocated for by the international community appeared to be shifting away from the radar with implications that remained unclear last night.

Yesterday’s developments also meant that a deal may not be announced tomorrow or even later in the week as earlier anticipated and that the now increasingly perpetual state of uncertainty could still hold.

The setback occurred as the talks entered the ninth week and forced Annan, who chairs the Panel of Eminent African Persons at the mediation talks, into a flurry of activity.

The mediator went into a meeting with ODM leader Raila and was later driven to State House, Nairobi, where he remained closeted into the night.

It is understood Annan sought audience with Raila and Kibaki after their representatives at the talks appeared to shift the responsibility of making the hard choices to the principals.

On Monday, it was hoped that the teams to the National Dialogue and Reconciliation Committee would begin finalising the agreement on ending the post-election turmoil that has left at least 1,000 dead before ODM’s deadline to resume street protests expires on tomorrow.

Until the dramatic twist of events yesterday, both Government and ODM had agreed in principle to create a prime minister’s post and also appeared to have covered considerable ground on the sharing Cabinet positions.

But that changed at the weekend, but things went completely off tangent yesterday.

“We have isolated a number of items that require our chairman’s consultations with our principals,” Mutula was quoted as saying.

On his part, Pentagon member and Eldoret North MP Mr William Ruto, who together with Mr Musalia Mudavadi (Sabatia), Dr Sally Kosgei (Aldai) and Mr James Orengo (Ugenya) make up the ODM side at the talks, said it was time Kibaki and Odinga “rolled in their influence”.

“On many of the issues that are outstanding, we are unable to agree, so they have been referred to the principals in the hope that they enjoy greater leverage and can be able to thrash out those issues,” Ruto told reporters.

The crisis over Kibaki’s disputed re-election, the worst since independence in 1963, has hurt Kenya’s image as a stable democracy and prosperous trade and tourism hub.

It has laid bare rifts over land, wealth and tribes that were born under British colonial rule and since exacerbated by politicians.

In the hope of addressing the long-held grievances and improving Kenya’s institutions, revising the 45-year-old Constitution has come to the fore.

Both sides have agreed on the need for changes to the Constitution, which gives immense powers to the President and which analysts say contributes to a divisive winner-take-all mentality at election time.

ODM, it is understood, wants to get word from President Kibaki through Annan on whether through his negotiating team, he was still committed to the talks or not.

ODM has insisted that the number of Cabinet ministries should be specified.

The talks also stalled after the negotiators failed to agree on whether the prime minister should have the authority to co-ordinate and supervise the execution of the functions and affairs of Government, including those of ministries and departments of the Government.

According to the Government document, the prime minister is to co-ordinate the performance of the ministries and perform any other duties as may be assigned to him by the President from time to time.

In the Legal Working Group document, any change in the Government affecting a person nominated by a parliamentary party of the coalition shall be made only after prior consultation and concurrence in writing with the leader of that party.

But yesterday, the PNU side went back on this by suggesting that the President have absolute discretion on who would be in Government.

by Ben Agina, The Standard, Nairobi, 26 Feb 2008