NO SUNDAY TALKS

State House has not scheduled any meeting between President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga on Sunday.

Reliable sources said that the Head of State had other prior engagements, and if any talks were to take place, it will be in the form of a routine meeting that is usually held between the two principals on Wednesdays.

There have been several instances when State House has taken issue with an apparent move to control the President’s diary from the PM’s Office at the Treasury.

The last time was when the PM said the President would attend the hyped tree planting ceremony in Mau forest last month only for State House to issue a denial.

At the time, the Presidential Press Service announced that the President would not attend the tree planting as claimed by the Prime Minister but would instead swear in judges to the constitutional court.

Last Sunday, the PM told reporters the suspension of Agriculture Minister William Ruto and Education Minister Sam Ongeri was done after talks with the President only for the Head of State to deny there was such consultations.

News of the purported Sunday meeting came from the PM’s office, but there has not been any official communication from State House from the Presidential Press Service which notifies the media of the President’s itinerary.

Moments after Mr Odinga asked the two Ministers to step aside, the President contradicted his announcement saying they would remain in office.

Since then, there has been a war of words between Mr Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement and Mr Kibaki’s Party of National Unity with some Members of Parliament even going to the extent of calling for elections despite the fact that the country does not having a voters’ register.

Members of ODM insisted that the Prime Minister was mandated to ask Mr Ruto and Mr Ongeri to resign while those allied to the President and mainly from the Party of National Unity coalition dismissed Mr Odinga’s move.

On Thursday, President Kibaki declared there was no crisis in Kenya despite calls from ODM for the Africa Union and Kofi Annan to step in to resolve an emerging political row.

Mr Annan has asked the leaders to resolve whatever differences exist.

Reports from the PM’s office also say the President spoke to Mr Odinga who is in Japan on phone.