State beefs up security for Raila, Uhuru and Mudavadi

By EDITH FORTUNATE efortunate@ke.nationmedia.com AND BERNARD NAMUNANE bnamunane@ke.nationmedia.com  ( email the author)

Posted  Saturday, February 2  2013 at  00:30

In Summary

• Presidential candidates to get more bodyguards in countdown to Kibaki exit from State House
• Fourth President to be sworn-in at Nyayo Stadium instead of the traditional Uhuru Park ceremony
• Strict timelines set for handing over, with new leader expected to take office on March 26, if election is not challenged

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Preparations for President Kibaki to hand over the reins of power to his successor have started in earnest with 29 days remaining to the March 4 General Election.

A government team, chaired by Head of Civil Service Francis Kimemia, is preparing a programme which will ease into office one of the eight presidential candidates who wins in the first round of the elections, two weeks after the announcement of results.
Already, the State has increased security for presidential aspirants and their deputies.

President Kibaki, whose term is ending, will remain in office until the swearing in ceremony even though his incoming successor will start tasting State authority by receiving security briefings from government officers before taking an oath.

The President-elect and deputy President-elect will have been accorded State security immediately after being declared winners of the elections. The Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission has said winners will be declared within 48 hours after the country votes on March 4.

On Friday, Mr Kimemia, who held the first of the four briefings on preparations for transfer of power, assured the public and the international community that the transition would be peaceful.

“We shall ensure a smooth and peaceful transfer of power within the provisions of the Constitution of Kenya,” he told journalists at the Sarova Stanley Hotel in Nairobi.

The briefing came three days after the IEBC cleared Prime Minister Raila Odinga (Cord), deputy PMs Uhuru Kenyatta (Jubilee) and Musalia Mudavadi (Amani), assistant minister Peter Kenneth (Eagle), outgoing Gichugu MP Martha Karua (Narc Kenya), former permanent secretary James ole Kiyiapi (RBK) and teacher-turned-businessman Mohammed Abduba Dida (ARK) to run for the top seat.

On Friday, IEBC chairman Ahmed Issack Hassan declared they would not alter any of the set deadlines to ensure that the elections were held on March 4.

This marks the first time in the history of the country when the transfer of power from an outgoing President to a new Head of State is guided by law and a clear programme. In addition to Articles 138, 140, 141, and 142 of the Constitution, Parliament passed the Assumption of the Office of the President Act to guide the transfer of power.

The Kimemia committee has worked on a plan to ensure that government operations will go on as the President-elect awaits swearing in.

“Cabinet will run government business until a new President is in place. There will be no power vacuum; we have put all the necessary measures in place. The new president can only assume his functions once he is sworn in,” he said.

The team has explored five possible situations that could unfold after the elections and set the dates on which the President-elect will take the oath of office.

The first, however, is a matter of fate beyond their control— in case one of the eight candidates dies before the election day — which could lead to the postponement of the elections for 60 days.

The second envisions a situation where one of the presidential candidates wins the elections in the first round without attracting a petition— what Mr Odinga and Mr Kenyatta have been promising. In such a situation, the President-elect will be sworn into office on March 26, two weeks after the IEBC formally announces all results of the elections.

In the third scenario, the committee imagines a situation where there is an outright winner but one of the losers files a petition challenging the result which is later dismissed by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court, according to Mr Kimemia, must deliver such judgment on April 8 so that the President-elect can take the oath of office on April 16.

However, should the petition be successful, the Kimemia team states in a fourth scenario, the election of the President will be declared null and a fresh poll held within 60 days. If this happens, the swearing in of the President-elect will take place on June 18, giving President Kibaki another three months in State House.

The fifth, and which is the likely situation, is when the presidential race goes for a run-off. The run-off will be held within 30 days from the date the elections were announced, pushing the swearing in ceremony for the new Head of State to April 30.

Key players in the transfer of power include Mr Kimemia, Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces Julius Karangi, Attorney-General Githu Muigai, National Intelligence Service Director-General Michael Gichangi, Inspector-General of Police David Kimaiyo, Clerk of the National Assembly Justin Bundi, Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Gladys Shollei and permanent secretaries in the ministries of Finance, Justice and Constitutional Affairs, and Foreign Affairs.

Mr Kimemia said his team had agreed to stage the swearing in ceremony at Nyayo National Stadium instead of Uhuru Park.

“Through advice from the Inspector-General David Kimaiyo, it is easier to control the security of Nyayo stadium than to control that of Uhuru Park. However, we will also liaise with the President-elect on his preferred public venue and advise on the same,” he said.

The President-elect will give a list of guests, including Heads of State of other countries, who will be invited to the ceremony.

“Upon signing the certificate of inauguration, the outgoing President shall hand over to the President-elect the following instruments of power and authority— a sword and the Constitution,” states the Assumption Act.

The ceremony will be conducted by the Registrar of the Judiciary, in the presence of Dr Mutunga. In case the CJ is absent, the deputy CJ will step in, meaning that the Judicial Service Commission has to name a new deputy CJ before March 4.

“We urge Kenyans to remain peaceful as this will be a public affair. We will have subsequent briefings to ensure the transition and hand over of power is done in a smooth way,” he said. President Kibaki is scheduled to tour Eastern Africa to say goodbye to fellow Heads of State and Government as he invites them to witness the handing over of power to his successor.

Mr Kimemia said that all other elected leaders ranging from senators, governors, county women’s representatives, MPs and county assembly representatives will be sworn in immediately.

“We are working on a plan to ensure the swearing in of governors is done swiftly,” he said.