Kibaki, Raila walk the tight rope

By Gakuu Mathenge

President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga must be gritting their teeth over the tough choices they have to make on the findings of the Waki Commission. December 17, the deadline for the Grand Coalition Government to agree on setting up a special tribunal to prosecute post- election related crimes is drawing close, and the two must be cracking the mind on how to get the Cabinet, which is split on the Waki Report, to strike a consensus.

Kibaki and Raila must also be toying with the language to use when they finally have to get some of their key backers in the Cabinet, believed to be on the list, to step aside.

The Waki Report recommends that suspects appearing before the tribunal must immediately resign their public offices or be relieved of their duties. If found guilty they would be banned from holding public office.

The two key actors in the disputed presidential election who finally shared power to stop post-election mayhem may soon have to ask some of the key backers they picked for the Cabinet to step aside until their names are cleared.

For President Kibaki it is the return of the heady moments in his first term when he had to Part Company with some of his allies in the Cabinet as they sought clearance of their names over Anglo Leasing and Goldenberg scandals.

They were Internal Security Minister George Saitoti, former Finance Minister David Mwiraria, and Energy Minister Kiraitu Murungi. All returned to the Cabinet, except former Internal Security Minister Chris Murungaru.

Prime Minister Raila Odinga and President Kibaki. Photo: File/Standard

Raila and Kibaki will be struggling to hold the coalition together, as they move to give the country a new constitution, and reform key arms of governance as spelt out in the Kofi Annan contract.

But for Kibaki, whose controversial win for a second term nearly took the country to civil war it is almost a zero option, as it presents an opportunity to improve on his legacy by healing the nation while at the same time punishing impunity.

But again it could be tricky for him to go the whole hog given that as the country slid to violence he was at the helm and the State machinery, which Waki implicated in the killings, was under his command. Probably that is why last week the President talked of forgiveness tempered with justice.

For Raila, whose initial support for the implementation of the report, through the setting up of a local tribunal before the International Criminal Court comes knocking, the muted resistance in the Orange Democratic Movement must be cause for worry.

On the one hand he must not ‘disappoint’ the international community by appearing to condone impunity and on the other, he must not loosen his grip on the country’s most popular party that could in 2012 win him the victory he believes Kibaki stole.

But then speculation is rife the names of some of the leaders who marshalled the communities that roundly voted for him, and who he fielded in the Serena peace talks, could be on the secret list Waki gave the lead mediator – Dr Annan.

But again Raila has to reach out to the communities who did not support him; by sending out a strong signal he cares for them and had nothing to do with the violence that targeted them. But again the report puts him up the tightrope – some of those who fought others claim they did it in his name.

Asked what choices were available for ODM in supporting the Waki Report without wrecking the party, Immigration Minister, Otieno Kajwang’ said on Wednesday: "We support the report fully. Failure to support would make any party leader look terrible locally and internationally. The challenge is to implement it with minimal political cost."

Today, in ODM some accuse him of ‘ingratitude’ and rushing to look good, by embracing his adversaries, abandoning them and their people. But still others in the party argue murder is criminal and no leader should tolerate any excuse for it. However, still others claim the violence was spontaneous and triggered by the bungled election.

This class of politicians want those who messed up with the electoral process, to the point the Justice Johann Kriegler’s Commission returned the verdict it is impossible to tell who won the presidential race, also made to face the fire.

The delicate nature of the balance the PM has to maintain is discernible from his shifting pronouncements, starting from unconditional support for the Waki Report, followed by the threat he would resign if his supporters were victimised.

Two days ago, with rising concern in his party the report could be used to settle post-election scores, Raila proposed those named first be investigated and only prosecuted if sufficient evidence is found they organised post-election violence.

He said even Waki himself argued he did not have enough time to carry out investigations, indicting those whose names he forwarded.

However, even as his Rift Valley political base appears to slide, with Ruto claiming he has forsaken his people, Raila appears to have taken a position, and damn the consequences.

During a live Thursday night TV talk show, Raila used unusually emotional language to pitch for implementation of the Waki Report: "A police officer kills eight people in Kibera in one afternoon. What do you tell their families, including their children if we do not implement the Waki recommendations? It does not mean those mentioned in the report are guilty, but the tribunal will make further investigations to find the truth."

Earlier in the week, Justice Minister, Martha Karua used equally strong language to put the country on notice that tough times and drastic actions lie ahead. "If you have two children, and one kills the other, what do you do? You mourn the dead and punish the offender. If nothing is done, you give the impression it is normal for children to kill each other. To end impunity, we have to bite the bullet."

On whether the Waki Report would bring down the Coalition, Karua said: "I am confident the coalition would not break up before pending reforms among them constitutional review are in place. Second, the political class also has self-interests that they must protect until 2012."

On Friday morning, former Defence Minister and President Kibaki’s long time political associate Njenga Karume said in a vernacular radio station he was not afraid of facing the Waki tribunal if his name was on his list.

"Let everybody who is mentioned face the tribunal and clear his name or give evidence. If we bury this Waki thing before people are investigated, we will be laying foundation for anarchy," Karume said.

Karume and some of his political associates are among personalities implicated in the disputed Kenya National Human Rights Commission (KNHRC) report in relation to alleged fundraising for retaliatory acts.

Karume said President Kibaki was keen on a peaceful and cohesive nation as his legacy, and that is why he supports the implementation of the Waki Report.

Karume denied Kibaki was out to shield some of his cronies from punishment, and that is why he was talking about "Justice tempered with forgiveness".

"He has been misunderstood. My understanding was he meant people should stop judging others before the tribunal conducts investigations. Only them would the victims decide who to forgive or not," Karume added.

During Inter-Parliamentary Union seminar at Safari Park, it was clear consensus on the way forward was difficult to achieve

To salvage the debate the Vice-President, Kalonzo Musyoka, and the Speaker of the National Assembly, Kenneth Marende, help constitute ad hoc committees, one to liaise with Parliament, and another to brief the Cabinet.

Clash of opinion on the Waki Report has been cited, as the reason the Cabinet has not discussed it. The two committees are expected whip MPs and ministers into a common position ahead of discussion in the Cabinet and eventual tabling in Parliament.

In his closing speech on Thursday, Kalonzo urged Parliament to seize the Waki and Kriegler reports as opportunities, "to bolster ethnic relations and implement far-reaching constitutional and electoral reforms".

 

 

 

 

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