Sunday, January 22, 2012

KIBAKI WANTS TO LEAVE IN DECEMBER



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PRESIDENT Kibaki prefers that elections should be held in December, according to some of his family members and close confidants. Kibaki, according to multiple sources, wants to avoid any controversy that could follow the expiry of his second five year term on December 31, 2012. "Mzee has made it clear that he wants to finish his term, hand over and proceed to his new Solio ranch soon after," said a Kibaki confidant.
The President would apparently prefer to have wants elections held well before Christmas this year so that Kenya have a new President by January. "Officially he is consulting with many relevant people before meeting Prime Minister Raila Odinga later to discuss the possibility of dissolving the coalition by around October so that elections can be held in December," said another associate close to the head of state.
The 'Solio' property is the former Sasini Estate and was formerly used for growing coffee and rearing grade cows. The 1,000-acre farm is situated near Mweiga town on the Nyeri-Nyahururu Highway in Kieni West district. A palatial Sh500 million home with an airstrip has been constructed there. Kibaki also has homes in Nairobi’s Muthaiga and Othaya, 25 kilometres from Mweiga. The First Family also has a 1,700-acre Rware farm in Narumoru town in Kieni East.
Kibaki can expect a luxurious life in retirement with 38 servants paid by the public. He will collect a Sh17 million lump sum gratuity from government and will receive a Sh950,000 tax-free monthly pension, a housing allowance of Sh300,000, Sh300,000 as electricity, water and telephone allowances; and a further Sh200,000 monthly as entertainment allowance. He will also be entitled to two four-wheel drive cars.
Some Cabinet ministers are still in favour of the December 17 date proposed by Justice minister Mutula Kilonzo in his Constitutional Amendment bill 2011 which is currently before Parliament. It has however been superseded by this month's court ruling that elections should be in March 2013 unless Kibaki and Odinga dissolve the coalition government earlier.
The president has remained silent since the High Court made its ruling last week. Raila has asked the country to remain calm as he consults with President Kibaki on the way forward. Yesterday Raila reiterated to the National Economic Council the government's commitment to ensuring that the forthcoming elections are peaceful. ''We must, and we shall, use the coming elections to show that we are marching forward, sadder, but wiser out of our past mistakes'', he pledged.
The PM also promised the government's determination to have a level playing field with a free, fair and transparent election. ''As a government, we are committed to holding such ideal elections. We are also confident that our new and vibrant institutions are gearing up for this role. They look equal to the task," he said. He termed those predicting violence as prophets of doom. In his Jamhuri Day message last year, President Kibaki similarly assured the country that his government had laid ground for a free and fair election by putting in place a revamped judiciary, Electoral and Boundaries Commission and enacted laws enforcing political discipline.
Another consideration supporting a December date is the difficulty of organising next year's budget if elections are pushed to March 2013. Article 221 (I) of the new constitution provides that the Executive, the Parliamentary Service Commission and the Judicial Service Commission must separately present their budgets to the Parliamentary Budget Office two months before the end of the financial year. Clause 260 (b) sets June 30th as the end of a financial year. This means that the revenue and expenditure estimates should be submitted to Parliament by May 1, 2013. If elections are held in March, it will be very difficult to prepare their budgets in time. If there is a run-off and the final result of the presidential election is in June, it could become impossible for the government to prepare a budget.
Creating a new government will take time as the names of cabinet secretaries- formerly ministers- have to be sent to the National Assembly for approval before formal appointment by the President. The PSC will similarly have to be appointed after the election. Yesterday South Consulting, which monitors Kenya’s reconciliation progress following the 2008 post election violence, said the country was not ready for general elections.
In a report to the Kofi Annan-led mediation panel of Eminent African Personalities, the firm said the new electoral boundaries are yet to be demarcated and the IEBC was running out of time. “Uncertainty remained on key constitutional issues, including provisions on gender balance and the delimitation of constituency boundaries, the absence of comprehensive civic and voter education and the lack of institutionalization of political parties to date,” it indicated.
According to the report, it is still important for Kenya to deal with the post election violence. “Public support for the ICC remains high, although lack of consensus in government about how to respond to the ICC investigation and whether to punish or grant amnesty to middle and lower-level perpetrators of the post-election violence sent mixed signals about dealing with impunity,” the South Consulting report said.

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