ANNAN COMING BACK

Former United Nations chief Kofi Annan is due in Kenya from Tuesday for a four-day visit.

Mr Annan will be in Kenya to chair meetings convened by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) where he is the chairman of the Board of Directors.

A statement from the PR agency handling his itinerary says Mr Annan looks forward to meeting with President Mwai Kibaki, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, and other stakeholders in the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation (KNDR) process during his visit.

Early last month, there were calls for Mr Annan to visit the country at the height of a dispute between the Orange Democratic Movement and the Party of National Unity after the President reversed an order to suspend Cabinet Ministers William Ruto and Sam Ongeri over graft claims.

The row reportedly diffused after the two principals held a telephone conversation while the PM was on an overseas trip.

Mr Annan did not heed ODM demands to visit the country to intervene in the dispute although he is understood to have spoken to the two on phone.

ODM threatened to boycott Cabinet meetings but there was division within its ranks with some ministers saying they would keep the Cabinet appointments.

President Kibaki later issued a statement saying there was no crisis in the country to warrant outside intervention.