Kibaki and Odinga signing coalition deal
President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga Thursday signed a deal that will see them share power through the creation of a Prime Minister position.
The deal, brokered by Africa Union chairman President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania and Mr Kofi Annan, will see the creation of a grand coalition sharing power according to party strength in Parliament.
The deal provides that the PM will coordinate and supervise Ministers, while Cabinet positions will be shared proportionally according to party strength in Parliament.
The President will have the authority to sack Cabinet members, but only with written agreement from leaders of the respective coalition party.
The Cabinet will comprise the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers and Ministers.
The coalition will collapse at the end of the current Parliament, or if the parties so agree, or if one partner withdraws.
The signing at Nairobi’s Harambee House was witnessed by diplomats and broadcast live on national television.
President Kibaki and Mr Odinga first signed the agreement, then President Kikwete and Mr Annan appended their signatures as witnesses.
The agreement was the result of a five-hour meeting chaired by President Kikwete involving Mr Annan, President Kibaki and Raila Odinga.
And this is how Kofi Anan explains the deal:
But let us not forget, how it sounded just some days ago:
Still, the coalition depends on the good will of the protagonists. It is a deal between Odinga and Kibaki, but there are many more characters who want their share of the deal. As soon as there is no Kofi Anan in Kenya anymore, the Coalition will become fragile. It all depends how much issues will be dealt with in next weeks before it comes into a standstill.
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From Guardian:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/28/kenya
Kenya’s leaders agree power-sharing deal
Kenya’s feuding politicians today signed a power-sharing deal to end the violence unleashed by December’s disputed election.
In a ceremony attended by virtually every foreign ambassador in Nairobi and carried live on Kenyan television, the president, Mwai Kibaki, and the opposition leader, Raila Odinga, signed an agreement that Kenyans hope will end the country’s worst political crisis since independence.
The two men shook hands flanked by Kofi Annan, the former UN secretary general, who helped broker the deal.
“In the spirit of partnership we can bring peace and prosperity back to Kenya,” Annan said. “Let the spirit of healing begin today, let it begin now.”
Annan sketched the outline of the agreement in which the government made a key concession on Odinga’s expected new role as prime minister.
Under the deal, Odinga can only be dismissed by a motion of no confidence from parliament, not by the president. The opposition had feared that power would remain far too concentrated in the presidency.
Annan called on those disappointed by the agreement to set aside their differences. “Compromise was necessary for the survival of this country,” he said.
Odinga and Kibaki thanked Annan and his fellow mediators. Odinga, who spoke before Kibaki, said: “We should ensure no one loses his or her life again senselessly.” Kibaki called on Kenyans to “embrace the spirit of togetherness”.
Today’s dramatic announcement followed talks that brought Odinga and Kibaki together for the first time in a month. Discussions between negotiators for the two rivals had ground to an acrimonious halt earlier this week.
Chances of a deal appeared to have unravelled this week when a government minister shouted at Annan and his fellow mediators. The former UN secretary general suspended the talks, complaining about the lack of progress, and said only the two men at the top could make a breakthrough.
The sticking point had been what powers the prime minister should have and how the cabinet jobs should be divided.
Odinga and Kibaki were under intense domestic and international pressure to compromise after the president’s election victory. Local and international observers said the results were manipulated, leaving it unclear who actually won.
Odinga had accused Kibaki of stealing the election, while the president said the opposition instigated the ethnic violence that killed more than 1,000 people and displaced more than 300,000.
The opposition had threatened to hold mass street protests today, but called them off after an appeal by Annan. Kibaki made a conciliatory gesture of his own by publicly agreeing to opposition demands of creating a prime ministerial position.
Post-election violence has largely subsided in recent weeks, but the country remained tense amid fears that unrest would break out again unless the politicians reached an understanding.
Gordon Brown said the deal represented a triumph for peace and diplomacy.
“The hard work must continue. Kenyans need help to resettle and rebuild. Real leadership, patience and tolerance is necessary to ensure that the agreement sticks,” the prime minister said.
Others spoke about potential pitfalls when the agreement moves to parliament.
“The really hard part begins now because this has to go to parliament,” said Macharia Gaitho, a Kenyan columnist. “I think both sides will really have to show good faith and whip their MPs into line to make sure that whatever is proposed in parliament passes without a hitch.”
Maina Kiai, the chairman of Kenya’s national human rights commission, warned that it was too soon to celebrate.
“The cabinet will have to be leaner and should not contain hardliners,” he said. “It is too early to talk about a new Kenya.”
From Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/article/africaCrisis/idUSL28839902
Kenya rivals forge coalition to end crisis
By C. Bryson Hull and Duncan Miriri
NAIROBI, Feb 28 (Reuters) – Kenya’s president and opposition leader signed a deal to create a power-sharing government on Thursday, hoping to end a post-election crisis that plunged the country into its worst turmoil since independence.
After a month of often bitter negotiations punctuated by violence around the east African nation, President Mwai Kibaki and his rival Raila Odinga inked an agreement and shook hands to a roar of applause.
“We have a deal,” mediator Kofi Annan said. “Compromise was necessary for the survival of this country … they kept the future of Kenya always in their sights and reached a common position for the good of the nation.”
Kibaki and Odinga were under intense pressure from the international community and Kenya’s 36 million people to find a solution to forestall more bloodshed and help restore their country’s reputation as a stable, prosperous regional anchor.
Kibaki’s disputed re-election in a Dec. 27 ballot triggered ethnic clashes that killed at least 1,000 people and forced 300,000 more to flee their homes.
Under the deal, a new prime minister’s position will be created for Odinga, who has sought that role since he first helped elect Kibaki in 2002. He claims the president reneged on a deal to give him the job after that vote.
It will also give cabinet posts based on each party’s strength in parliament and create two deputy prime ministers’ jobs, one for each side of the coalition. Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) has the largest number of seats.
Later, Kenya will undertake a full review of the constitution, a 45-year-old document which many Kenyans have pushed to change since the 1990s since it gives the president nearly unchecked authority over affairs of state.
Many Kenyans want a new charter to help address rifts over land, tribe and wealth that have plagued the nation since before independence from Britain in 1963.
From Nation Media:
http://politics.nationmedia.com/inner.asp?pcat=NEWS&cat=TOP&sid=1552
President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga Thursday signed a deal that will see them share power through the creation of a Prime Minister position.
The deal, brokered by Africa Union chairman President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania and Mr Kofi Annan, will see the creation of a grand coalition sharing power according to party strength in Parliament.
The deal provides that the PM will coordinate and supervise Ministers, while Cabinet positions will be shared proportionally according to party strength in Parliament.
The President will have the authority to sack Cabinet members, but only with written agreement from leaders of the respective coalition party.
The Cabinet will comprise the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers and Ministers.
The coalition will collapse at the end of the current Parliament, or if the parties so agree, or if one partner withdraws.
The signing at Nairobi’s Harambee House was witnessed by diplomats and broadcast live on national television.
President Kibaki and Mr Odinga first signed the agreement, then President Kikwete and Mr Annan appended their signatures as witnesses.
The agreement was the result of a five-hour meeting chaired by President Kikwete involving Mr Annan, President Kibaki and Raila Odinga.
First signs of a deal emerged when Mr Annan, soon after the Thursday meeting ended at 3pm, told journalists that they had managed to agree and that details would be made public in about an hour.
The two sides had until then failed to agree on how to structure a coalition Government. President Kibaki had maintained that he is ready to appoint a Prime Minister and two deputies, but under the current Constitution.
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), on the other hand, insisted that any power sharing arrangement must be cemented through relevant Constitutional amendments. They also wanted the PM to be named head of Government and the President to be head of State, and equal sharing of Cabinet positions, among others.
Also at the meeting was former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa, who sits with Mr Annan in the Panel of Eminent African personalities who have been driving the mediation since January. The third panellist is former South African first lady Graca Machel, however she did not attend Thursday’s meeting.
Both President Kibaki and Mr Odinga were at the venue of the talks accompanied by some of their negotiators, but it is not yet clear whether the negotiators attended the meeting.
Those at the venue include the Government negotiating team that include Cabinet ministers Martha Karua (Justice), Moses Wetangula (Foreign Affairs), Prof Sam Ongeri (Education) and Mbooni MP Mutula Kilonzo. They were joined by Local Government minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Attorney General Amos Wako.
Mr Odinga arrived with his negotiators Musalia Mudavadi, James Orengo, Dr Sally Kosgei and Mvita MP Najib Balala.
President Kikwete arrived in Nairobi on Tuesday soon after Mr Annan suspended the mediation talks that had being going on at Nairobi’s Serena Hotel. The decision came after the Government and the ODM negotiators failed to compromise on how to create a Prime Minister position, seen as key in the structure of power sharing arrangement.
The Tanzanian President initially planned to depart Nairobi on Wednesday, but extended his visit by a day.
Local and international pressure is on President Mwai Kibaki and Mr Odinga to compromise on a power-sharing agreement.
Kenya was thrown into a political crisis after Kibaki was declared the winner of a disputed December 27 presidential election.
Violence that followed the announcement resulted in the death of more than 1,000 people and left over 350,000 others displaced.
From Standard:
http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=1143982557&cid=4&PHPSESSID=721efb24028dc0bab959912101171375
Joy as Kibaki, Raila sign power sharing deal
Published on February 29, 2008, 12:00 am
By Patrick Wachira
Finally, the much-awaited power sharing deal that has been shrouded in controversy, but which held the only key to a peaceful and agreeable settlement of the post-election impasse has been signed.
Both President Kibaki and the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader, Mr Raila Odinga, appended their signatures on the historic deal that saw the return of the Office of the Prime Minister scrapped by Jomo Kenyatta in 1964.
News that a deal had been struck touched off a carnival mood in Orange strongholds, relief in many parts of the country and general optimism to a battered and anxious population.
The world watched Dr Kofi Annan and his UN-backed Panel of African Eminent Persons and African Union chairman Jakaya Kikwete as they brought together the erstwhile rivals in a ceremony beamed live on TV.
In a nutshell, the deal — which will be entrenched in the Constitution — created the post of an executive prime minister, who will supervise ministers and lead Government in Parliament. It also provides for the sharing of Cabinet positions based on the strength of parties in the House.
President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga sign an agreement on power sharing, expected to end the crippling political crisis triggered by the discredited presidential elections. Looking on are, from left to right, Mr Amos Wako, President Kikwete, Dr Kofi Annan, Mr Benjamin Mkapa and Mr James Orengo.
This memorable covenant that could usher in a new era of reforms — which successive regimes have procrastinated over until the near post-poll meltdown — will assume legal and constitutional force when Parliament is summoned on Thursday next week.
On Thursday night, Britain and the United States, who have stridently pushed for “real power-sharing” to break the crippling impasse arising from a discredited presidential election, swiftly welcomed the development.
“Kenya’s leaders have reached a power-sharing agreement that represents a triumph for peace and diplomacy, and a renunciation of the violence that has scarred a country of such enormous potential,” British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said.
He added: “Common sense has prevailed, and the Kenyan people have the outcome for which they have hoped and prayed. I applaud the courage that Kenya’s leaders have shown in taking the tough decisions necessary to put Kenya back on the path to prosperity, democracy and stability which it is so richly deserves”.
However, Brown said the hard work must continue, adding: “Kenyans need help to resettle and rebuild. Real leadership, patience and tolerance are necessary to ensure that the agreement sticks”.
Mr Tom Casey, the US State Department spokesman summed the outcome expected to put the country back on track after a bloodletting that claimed at least 1,000 lives and left close to half a million people displaced, thus: “That’s an important and very positive step forward. We are very pleased to see that this agreement has been reached”.
He noted that the deal would allow the Kenyan people to move forward with what he described as “a very basic issue of governance”. The official added: “We want to see this agreement implemented… We certainly appreciate the goodwill shown by both President Kibaki and Mr Odinga in reaching this agreement. We certainly would hope that everyone associated with their political parties and movements would work with them to support this deal and move it forward”.
In his speech soon after signing the accord, President Kibaki gave a solemn promise to see to it that the deal was honoured to the letter so that Kenyans could embark on the task of nation building and reconstruction.
The President was in a jovial mood as he signed off a portion of his powers to rival Raila in a historic moment at the steps of Harambee House.
Post of Prime Minister
The new office of the PM will have power and authority to co-ordinate and supervise the functions of the Government and will be occupied by an elected MP who will also be the leader of the party or coalition with majority members in Parliament.
Further, his removal and that of his two deputies will only be through a vote of no confidence by majority MPs.
The coalition government will also reflect portfolio balance and party strength in Parliament.
On Thursday, the Office of the President — chosen after Raila and his team objected to having mediation talks held at State House — was the venue yet again of this momentous occasion.
Earlier, Annan had engaged Kibaki and Raila for the better part of five hours as they discussed the making of a new political dispensation not seen before in the country’s history.
In his speech, Kibaki asked Kenyans to rededicate themselves and to engage in “productive activities that contribute to the prosperity and well-being of our nation. We should also be a caring nation that reaches out to its neighbours and those who are disadvantaged in our society”.
Raila regretted that for the last two months, Kenyans had known nothing but sadness. He, however, said that the tragic events that followed the discredited presidential elections would also serve as a platform to launch reforms that would make Kenya a better place to live.
Said he: “I wish to thank millions who turned up on the 27th of December to vote. Those who voted were exercising their democratic rights. Kenyans did not know that turmoil would follow but this is what countries at times go through”.
He added: “Many have been killed, many orphaned, many widowed and many displaced. We should ensure that Kenyans begin to celebrate and love each otherÉThe crisis was a test for Kenya and a lesson for a forum for foundation for a united country”.
In his speech, Annan said he and other mediators would continue with the talks until other agenda, including land access and equity, as well as poverty eradication, are concluded.
On his part Kikwete referred to the violence that rocked Kenya as a historical accident, saying it can be a “thing of the past”.
He said the toil and sweat of the mediation team had been handsomely rewarded following yesterday’s signing of the power deal.
“This agreement, if implemented fully, will help the people of Kenya,” he said.
Kikwete said friends of Kenya were keen to see the agreement implemented in full, following which they would assist in the task of reconstruction.
He said the task was not for the two principals but the entire Kenyan population across social and political divides.
Earlier, Annan had said he would sustain his efforts until the entire job was completed. He said the AG would work on the Constitutional amendment to be tabled in Parliament for enactment.
He commended the efforts of the mediators, which made the deal possible. “Let the process of healing begin now,” he said.
The deal was a result of give and take, he said, and expressed hope that those involved would not be left with a feeling that they either gave too much or got too little.
Comment: Jannek – 29. February 2008 @ 1:21 am
[...] Kibaki and Odinga signing coalition deal [...]
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