Kenya: half-term is solution

  1. Posted on Thursday 3 January 2008 - 14:22
    John M
    Image of John M
    Now that the principle of discussion and negotiation is being put forward as the only way out of the Kenyan crisis, it is time to suggest to the future mediation team some solutions that could illuminate them.

    I am strongly convinced that Kibaki hurriedly took his oath to put everybody, including Odinda and the international community, in front of an accomplished fact, which automatically puts him in the position of control. This means that the mediation team will not have to suggest his stepping down, because it would not work at all.

    On the other hand, Odinga is strong-headedly convinced that he is the winner, and perhaps he is right, given the fact that the last vote-counting hours were rather like poll-filling time for Kibaki, who suddenly made up the over-1 million vote gap and added some more hundreds of thousands.

    The above suggests that the two former allies, who by the way, belong to two big ethnic groups, need satisfaction, and this is how they can get it. Let them have a glance at the transition to democracy in Burundi. After years of unrest, the Tutsi and the Hutu decided to open a new era of democracy, preceded by a successful transition. In that period, the incumbent Tutsi president ruled for two years with a Hutu vice president, and then a Hutu ruled two years with a Tutsi vice president, and the whole process ended with transparent elections.

    The Burundi model can inspire Kenya. The only lesson from the December election is that there are two caimans – Kibaki and Odinga - in one pool. The election belongs now to the past and another one should be planned after the two half terms. If this Burundi model was adopted, there is no reason for either side to reject it as power would be equally shared pending the next elections.

Latest News

  1. OPINION: Welcome to African Green Revolution24/05For the past century and a half, Africa has tried various agricultural approaches without much success.
  2. Egyptians vote in historic election23/05Egyptians began voting freely on Wednesday for the first time to pick their president in a wide open election that pits Islamists against men who serv…
  3. Africa Day 2012 - a moment for reflection and…22/0525th May is Africa Day. For many years it has been a celebration of African unity. It dates back to 1963 when the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) …
  4. South Africa's African agenda21/05The Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa, Kgalema Mothlanthe paid a rare visit to Ghana in April at the invitation of John Dramani Mahama …
  5. Women struggle to rinse hunger, poverty stains21/05Just looking at her one clearly appreciates that she is old and frail therefore in need of support for food, clothing and shelter to live comfortably …
  6. Climate Climate change affects migratory birds…21/05Changes in the climate globally have affected the movement of both migratory and resident species of birds, Nature Uganda has said.
  7. Ghana: Foreign retailers cited for currency…18/05The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is attributing the sharp depreciation of the Ghana cedi against major currencies to the illegal activiti…
  8. Kenya: Community radio brings succour to…18/05Korogocho, a slum in northeastern Nairobi with 100,000 inhabitants, had many of the ingredients for a political explosion similar to those that rocked…
  9. Veld fires 'flame' Zimbabwe's…16/05Over the years, Zimbabwe has experienced the scourge of veld fires destroying property worth thousands of dollars.
  10. Liberia commends ECOWAS for support14/05The induction training of pioneer Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Volunteers for Liberia kicked off in Monrovia, with the Deputy Mi…
  11. Vanishing Lake Chad puts 30m lives at risk14/05As you approach the Lake Chad basin from Maiduguri, in north-eastern Nigeria, the evidence of despair is telling.
  12. Heavy rains cause havoc in Kenya14/05Heavy Rainfall continued to wreak havoc across the country leading to the suspension of relief food in some parts of the country as most roads in Turk…
  13. Zimbabwe: Growth points lie dormant14/05The Zimbabwean government mooted the concept of growth points in the 1980s as a means of decongesting cities and towns.
  14. Sierra Leone improves in infant mortality11/05Sierra Leone has improved in infant mortality cases according to Save the Children- World Motherhood index 2012 report. The West Africa country descri…
  15. Zimbabwe: Resettled farmers fail to utilize…10/05Resettled farmers in Zimbabwe are failing to utilize land due to inadequate farming inputs and lack of resources.
News archive