KENYA'S BUMPY ROAD TOWARDS REAL DEMOCRACY

Countdown to 30 hours that destroyed democracy in Kenya followed by rather long bumpy road that seemed to last for ever. BETTER LATE THAN NEVER!

Thursday December 27,2007:

voting day- People are optimistic and this is apparent judging from the record voter turn out. People beginning to cue as early as 4am.

Friday December 28,2007:

Vote tallying begins, the mood is ecstatic and people are highly optimistic,most have made partying arrangements as early reports began to show that most of the old guards have been/or being voted out. This is good for Kenya, most people agree. Democracy being witnessed first hand in Africa-through Kenya. As most of the local and international observers i.e the western world hails the high voter turn out and the peaceful manner in which they have conducted themselves despite a few hitches.

Saturday December 29, 2007

1343: Results for 174 constituencies had been received and the gap suddenly narrows between Raila and Kibaki. Kibaki had been trailing on vote count up to this point.

While sitting with Institute of Education in Democracy (IED)’s Executive Director, Koki Muli (observer), and journalist Kiss 100’s Paul Ilado (journalist) on the second floor of Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC), the ECK’s Chair, Samuel Kivuitu, receives results that put the gap between the Party of National Unity (PNU)’s Kibaki about 107,779 votes behind the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM)’s Raila Odinga—Kibaki has 3,697,768 and Odinga 3,805,547 votes, while ODM Kenya’s Kalonzo Musyoka has 498,361 votes.

1500: Nail-biting wait

Some ECK Commissioners express concerns to Muli about the long delays and remark that, since the gap between the two front-runners is narrowing, the ECK may have to await results from all the constituencies before announcing the final tally. This, it is feared, will heighten tensions and anxiety among political parties, their candidates and supporters. No one seems to understand why the delays were so long, especially as the ECK had been better prepared than in 2002, when such delays were not experienced.

1600: Ballots scrutiny

Kivuitu becomes more suspicious of discrepancies and begins to contemplate a re-examination of results. Most results are not available as they have only been telephoned in. Kivuitu yields to pressure from ODM and PNU to scrutinise the tallying of presidential ballots in all the 210 constituencies after party agents point out that votes being announced by the ECK’s tallying centre in KICC do not agree with those announced at the constituency tallying centres. He agrees to have two political party agents each for every presidential candidate and five domestic election observers verify the results. Kivuitu says he wants the findings in a report to be discussed by all ECK Commissioners the following morning.

1800: The night shift begins

The atmosphere inside the ECK is tense. The day teams leave without properly handing over to the night teams. Kipkemoi Kirui, deputy leader for Team II (night), notes that although results for Lamu East, Lamu West, Wundanyi and Dujis have come in, they do not have the statutory documents, Forms 16A, 16 and 17A, accompanying them. The day team leaders responsible have therefore not signed for them. Kirui also refuses to receive them without the necessary documents because there are doubts about the verity of the data. Word goes round that his team is not accepting results without the accompanying Form 16As. For most of the night, he and his team repeatedly call the returning officers for results together with statutory documents. Statutory documents for Ijara, Galole, Wundanyi and Dujis are not received even though the results are phoned in.

1900: Setting up for verification

The tallying centre at KICC is set up for ten teams, each sitting around a table to receive, verify and forward constituency results to the internet technology (IT) team to prepare for announcement. The teams are managed by a team leader and a deputy leader. Most of the teams consist of returning officers and ECK staff. Each team is working on about 21 constituencies shared according to ECK’s own plan so that, for example, Team I deals with Mombasa and Nairobi.

In addition to tables for the ten teams, more are reserved for use by ECK Commissioners and senior staff as well as filing clerks, spread out strategically in the room to enable any of the above mentioned people to operate from a station. There are also waiting chairs reserved for returning officers, security staff and other people allowed inside the rooms.

2000-2100: Initial hitches

Observers are denied access to the tallying room at KICC. They get the ECK Chair and Secretary to intervene and are finally let in. ECK Deputy Secretary, Suleiman Chege, who receives them congenially, insists that they be accorded all the help they need. Observers are conducted on a tour of ECK’s offices enthusiastically.

2237: Verification begins

After arguments about how and where to begin the verification, work finally begins. James Orengo for ODM insists that results for all 210 constituencies be reviewed while Martha Karua for PNU wants scrutiny to be limited to Forms 16A of only contested constituencies, which she insists they have to identify and agree on since the discrepancies and problems associated with tallying are not only in constituencies that the ODM identified in the afternoon, mostly in Central and central Eastern Provinces, but were in Nyanza and the Rift Valley. Julius Melli, Association of Professional Societies in East Africa (APSEA) (observer) encounters a hostile reception at the verifying tables. Karua complains about there being too many observers, prompting a domestic observer to move from the table where agents of political parties are seated to another table where he is not noticeable.

2247: Extent of the problem

All results for the presidential election are in except for 14 constituencies.

Observers immediately notice discrepancies in the results transmitted from the constituencies to the ECK’s headquarters at KICC. They also notice that a number of the statutory documents for the constituencies’ returns have serious anomalies:

a) they are not signed by the returning officers;

b) they are not countersigned by agents;

c) in some cases, only photocopies of these forms are available even though the law requires that the originals be filed;

d) although all these forms (Form 16A, 16 and 17A) require an ECK stamp to stamp to validate them, those that have a stamp are the exception rather than the rule;

e) ECK Commissioners have thus announced constituency results without verifying their authenticity with the necessary statutory documentation. For example, provisional results were telephoned in and even though the ECK called back the returning officers to ensure the results indeed came from them, most returning officers phoned in different results from what they delivered in person to KICC. Yet the ECK Commissioners accepted and included these results in the final tally;

f) Although the ECK Regulations (Parliamentary and Presidential Elections Act, Cap 7 of 2007) clearly states that the ECK shall not accept for results that showed voter turnout of 100 per cent and above, the ECK Commissioners allowed returning officers who had returns over 100 per cent to “correct them.” They subsequently accepted and included such results for tallying without any explanation, for example, Maragwa constituency had given results amounting to a 115 per cent voter turnout but the returning officer was allowed to reduce them to 85.24 per cent at KICC and these results were accepted for the final tally!

g) It is unusual for ECK senior staff and Commissioners to accept results from constituencies without proper documentation and to allow returning officers to prepare the documentation at the ECK headquarters as they did at KICC. Most returning officers did not arrive with proper documentation yet were allowed to prepare their documents at KICC. This was the case for Kipipiri, Starehe, Kinangop, Garsen, Turkana Central and Turkana North and Kajiado North.

Observer inquiries establish that agents were unable to sign Form 16A in areas of Central and Eastern provinces because they were not allowed to do so or they were sent out of the counting halls altogether. In some areas, the returning officers inform the observers that agents did not feel secure enough to stay through the counting. This apparently happened in the Meru districts, in Central, Nyanza and parts of the Rift Valley.

The agents of PNU, ODM and ODM-K settle on 44 constituencies found to have filed results, already announced by ECK Commissioners, without any primary or original evidence for example, original signed, countersigned and stamped Forms 16A, 16 and 17A. These constituencies include the following: Gatundu South, Makadara, Likoni, Kaloleni, Galole, Lamu East, Wundanyi, Malindi, Voi, Ijara, Dujis, Igembe South, South Imenti, Nithi, Kitui West, Kitui South, Mwala, Kinangop, Ol Kalou, Mukurweini, Juja, Githunguri, Kiambaa, Lari, Eldoret East, Baringo East, Baringo Central, Laikipia West, Nakuru Town, Naivasha, Kuresoi, Rongai, Kimilili, Bumula, Alego, Bondo, Kisumu Rural, Kasipul-Kabondo, Ndhiwa, Migori, Kuria, Bomachoge, Bobasi, Nyaribaru Chache and Kitutu Masaba.

Results for these constituencies were thus announced in contravention of the law.

In addition, results for Dagoretti constituency were found to have been announced while vote tallying was still in progress.

Documents for Kinangop, Kipipiri, Ol Kalou, Ndaragwa, Tetu, Kieni, Mathira, Othaya and Ndaragwa had no ECK stamp.

Many constituency results were received and announced by Commissioners without the signatures of ECK officials and all party agents. Indeed, some of the documents conveying the results contained only the results without the presiding officers’ signature, ECK stamp or any agent’s signature. For example, there were no signatures and stamps in most Forms 16A, 16, and 17 A from Nithi, Kitui West, Kitui South, Mwala, Kinangop, Ol Kalou, Mukurweini, Gichugu, Lari, Mathioya, Eldoret East, Mosop, Aldai, Baringo East, Baringo Central, Laikipia West, Naivasha, Nakuru, Kuresoi, Kajiado North, and Kajiado South yet the Commissioners had already announced the results from these constituencies.

Some constituencies had only a few statutory forms, but their total votes were still announced. These included Ndaragwa, which had 25 Forms 16A not signed by party agents.

There were 34 Forms 16A not signed for Mathira. There was one Form 16A that had a double entry, and two returns for parliamentary results were entered in the presidential file. The total presidential tally of 16A returns was actually 77,442 votes after additions were verified by a Commissioner, ECK Deputy Secretary and observers against the 80,024 announced by the ECK.

The ECK’s legal officer, Jemimah Keli, is notified of these discrepancies by Melli, but she takes away the file and hands it to the ECK’s head of research, […] Laichena, for storage. She says rechecking numbers would slow everyone down. The focus of the scrutiny, she adds, should be limited to whether or not there are Forms 16 and 16A, and not stretch to calculations or checking for consistency in the figures. She says that she and other ECK staff had not slept for many days and wished they could do voluntary work like the observers. She asks if Melli is being paid to observe the elections. When answers in the negative, she asks why he is paying so much attention to detail. She is taking notes but seems more preoccupied with justifying every concern raised than addressing it. There are questions about the accuracy of her record of the goings-on.

16 Forms 16A for Othaya have not been signed by party agents.

Results for the following constituencies were announced without some statutory documents including Forms 16A, 16 and 17A Makadara, Starehe, Likoni, Malindi, Galole, Wundanyi, Ijara, Lamu East, Voi, Dujis and Igembe South.

Some results were also faxed as provisional tallies, as in Kirinyaga Central. In other cases, results were announced when there was no documentation to support the announcement, for example, Kimilili, Bumula Alego, Kitutu Masaba, Nyaribari Chache, Bomachoge and Kuria constituencies.

In some cases, the returning officers’ files available at ECK’s tallying centre are in duplicate and ECK senior staff claim they cannot find the original files for scrutiny. Examples include Kieni, Ol Kalou and North Imenti. Indeed, most photocopies of Forms 16A were neither signed by the presiding officers nor by party agents, yet the results on such forms were included in the tally of results.

In some cases there were disparities between the total votes cast for parliamentary and civic elections on one part and those cast for the presidential election on the other.

2300: Results without documents

Work slows to a near-stop until around midnight when a sleepy-looking fellow is ushered in. He is the returning officer from Moyale. He does not have Forms 16A, 16, 17 or 17A. He slips into a doze as Kirui consults. Hours later, Kivuitu announces the Moyale results—without any documentation.

After Moyale, results for Saku and Laisamis follow. They are not supported by any of the statutory documents and Kirui refuses to receive them. His Team Leader goes ahead to receive them nonetheless. The ECK Chair announces the results. The figures are, in a number of instances, overstated. Kirui feels perturbed because there is no reason for the returning officers’ failure to bring in the statutory documents three days after the vote tallying at the constituency level.

Disparities between provisional results phoned in earlier and those relayed to KICC were also noted for Kipipiri, Kieni, Maragua, Juja and Dagoretti constituencies

2300: Slippery returning officers

Observers Melli and Muli meet the returning officer for Starehe and ask about the constituency. He says the people who had been causing trouble wanted to disrupt the electoral process. They had wanted him to announce results that favoured their candidate and had been threatening him and pushing him forward but he says he had insisted on doing what the ECK had sent him to do.

He says that he first called for police reinforcements and then announced the winner because they had recounted the vote twice. There had been an anomaly in one of the stations, he says, and when it was rectified, the winner was known. He does not, however, let observers examine the file for the constituency. Observers never got to examine the file.

The Kipipiri results reported on the telephone give 36,470 votes to Kibaki against the 37,315 announced by the ECK. The final tally on file shows 37,279 votes.

Sunday, December 30, 2007

0100: Insider information

One ECK senior staff member calls Muli outside the hall and asks her if she is aware that something terrible is happening. The ECK senior staff member points out that it is important for observers to scrutinise all returning officers’ returns especially of Mombasa, Central, Eastern, North Eastern, Rift Valley and Nyanza. The senior staff member also cautions her that the discrepancies have been planned systematically and are not accidental. She says the scheme involves most Commissioners, who have organised how the tallying will be carried out. There is also the concern that Commissioners were in charge of their regions—which had not been the practice in the past—and most of the Commissioners engaged returning officers who owed them loyalty, in some cases, replacing returning officers who had experience, having worked with the ECK in the past.

0200: Missing returns

The only constituencies without results are Kibwezi and Emuhaya. In the case of Kibwezi, the returning officer had reportedly been threatened with dire consequences by one of the candidates if he released the results. Although he was assured of transport by helicopter and additional paramilitary police escort, he still would not come in. Emuhaya was bogged down by logistical problems. The ECK Chair announced the results the following day.

Electoral official quits

Kirui’s colleagues tell him that results are being reduced or suppressed for certain constituencies. He raises the alarm. He takes his Team Leader, […] Njuguna, aside and starts saying: “My brother, this is an important national exercise. I am concerned that we are not following the law and we are letting down Kenyans …” Njuguna tells him he would be recommending Kirui’s removal because he was proving difficult. He goes ahead to report him to Daniel Koech, who asks Njuguna to cooperate with Kirui.

Njuguna goes back to their work station. Kirui follows him and tells the team that he regards their work as an important national exercise that demands patriotism and neutrality. Kirui also demands respect and cooperation from Njuguna, who says that if he wishes to, he could leave. Kirui leaves the ECK offices for the last time.

0400: Fatigue and irritation set in

Melli says, “I started noticing general irritation and resistance from ECK officials. I asked for the Nithi constituency file, but the returning officer grabbed it and held it close to his chest. The same was the case for the Starehe constituency file. The returning officer for Nithi went outside and carried all his documents with him wherever he went.” ECK Commissioners who are asked to intervene defend their staff, saying they had not completed work on the files.

0500: Invented figures show up

Molo constituency returning officer provides results showing that Kibaki has 50,145 votes at completion of counting but ECK prepares to announce 75,261 votes for him and provides a computer print out of the increased results. ECK Commission staff deny observers the opportunity to verify information on file, saying the result had not been announced.

Observers at the ECK tallying centre at KICC who take a break from the tallying room to freshen up are denied re-entry. Those who come in to relieve their colleagues on night duty are also barred from entering. Police presence is strong and the atmosphere tense.

0930: Agents ordered out

A message goes out on the public address system asking all agents to leave the premises. Observers are also ordered out and evicted.

1000: ECK goes underground

A media briefing scheduled for 1000 to announce presidential results is put off indefinitely.

1100: Odinga press conference

The ODM presidential candidate claims he has won the election according to results from his call centre.

1300: Trial balloon

Word goes round that the ECK could announce the results of the presidential election at any time.

1421: ODM press conference

ODM holds a press briefing at KICC and discloses rigging by the ECK in 48 constituencies after a joint parties and ECK audit of all the 210 constituencies. William Ruto discloses that all 48 constituencies lacked supporting documents and inflated Kibaki’s figures. The ECK does not provide any evidence to the contrary.

1620: Protests on the floor

The ECK Chair attempts to announce the final results of the presidential election. He, however, begun with announcing the results of Molo which were inflated, 75,261 instead of the 50,145 votes announced at the constituency tallying centre. Kivuitu is shouted down by ODM which insists that the contested results need to be resolved, including those of Molo, and also insist the delayed results from Eastern and Central provinces had been inflated. The ECK Commissioners leave the briefing centre under police escort.

1642: Bombshell

An ECK staff member, Kipkemoi Kirui, tells an ODM-convened press conference that the poll results and documents are being manipulated at the KICC, and that he and many other people had deserted their work stations in frustration.

1700: Dogged determination

A signal goes out to the diplomatic corps that the ECK is about to announce the results.

1739: The Final announcement

Paramilitary police clear KICC as the ECK Chair announces Kibaki winner of the presidential election in a sealed room. The news is relayed via the public Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) and picked up by other networks.

1824: Swift swearing-in

Kibaki is sworn in as President at State House in Nairobi as protests erupt all over Kenya.

A live press conference by ODM is pulled off air as the Minister for Internal Security suspends live broadcasts.

Thereafter the country explodes to its present state.....

During the countdown to the General Election, there were ominous developments that pointed to the hard line stances that would be taken afterwards by both parties.

First there were allegations that the Government was dispatching Administration Police Officers countrywide to rig elections in favour of Kibaki and PNU.

Then there was the scary presence of heavily armed General Service Unit (GSU) personnel who cordoned off the Kenyatta Conference Centre (KICC) just before Kenyans voted. KICC was the vote tallying centre of the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK).

The delay in the announcement of the presidential results and sudden unexplained surges of votes in favour of President Kibaki created further tension.

Then followed the hasty and unfamiliar circumstances in which the presidential results were announced.

This was crowned with a hasty swearing in of President Kibaki at State House, Nairobi. Countrywide violence, which had begun a day earlier, spread and worsened.

This marked the beginning of shadow boxing between President Kibaki and Raila. Kibaki said he won the election fairly and advised his opponent to go to court. Raila insisted the victory was stolen from him and that President Kibaki should step down and pave way for a re-run.

PNU playing the "strong-arm" card through use of brutal force to end violence. Then all "peaceful protests" by ODM and live broadcasts ere banned.

The next card by the Government was to form a coalition with Mr Kalonzo Musyoka's ODM-Kenya and pooling in MPs from other smaller parties.

This was designed to add PNU's numerical strength in Parliament, where it expected the next war to be fought.

But with the rising death toll and destruction of property, PNU and ODM were alarmed.

The international community also expressed concern at the Kenyan situation.

No world leader, except Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni, congratulated President Kibaki.

On January 1, 2008, British Prime Minister Mr Gordon Brown — in his New Year message — telephoned Raila and offered to intervene and end the chaos. The death toll had by then reached 300.

Raila had decided he would not meet face to face with President Kibaki. He accepted Gordon's offer but with two conditions.

"The first condition is that President Kibaki must first step aside and publicly own up to the fact that he was not elected President. The second condition is that the negotiation must be done by mediators because I'm not willing to talk to him directly," the ODM leader said.

On January 2, several things happened.

Europe offered to assists

The US and the UK issued a joint statement, which quoted UK Foreign Secretary Mr David Milliband and his US counterpart Dr Condoleezza Rice pledging both diplomatic and political assistance to end the crisis.

"The immediate priority is to combine cessation of violence by their followers. We call on all political leaders to engage in a spirit of compromise that puts the democratic interests of Kenya first," they said.

The African Union (AU) announced that its delegation led by Ghana's President John Kufuor was expected in the country.

A statement from AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, said: "This visit is part of the AU efforts to assist in overcoming the post-electoral crisis facing Kenya."

Milliband and Rice supported the peace initiatives of the AU, EU and the Commonwealth.

Kibaki, in an attempt to resolve the issue internally, invites all MPs-elect from all political parties for a meeting at State House, Nairobi. The agenda of the meeting was unclear, so was its outcome.

A PPS dispatch later said 85 MPs-elect met the President who urged them to focus on issues that affect the people once Parliament is opened. No ODM or ODM-Kenya MP turned up.

Ignoring Kibaki's gestures, Raila on January 3 said his team had identified former United Nations Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, former South African Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Kufuor for mediation.

Raila said he had talked to Brown, Rice and Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

"All these leaders want peace and we have identified Annan, Kufuor and Tutu to negotiate but the Government has refused," said Raila.

Tutu had already arrived in the country at the invitation of the All Africa Conference of Churches to lead a delegation to mediate between the political adversaries to restore peace.

Tutu, after meeting with President Kibaki at State House, Nairobi, on January 4, said the President was willing to form a coalition government if the Opposition ended the post-election violence.

President Kibaki had also assured Tutu that once Parliament re-opens, the Government would reach out to find a solution.

But Tutu wanted the process initiated even before Parliament re-opens.

On January 5, Kibaki and Raila met separately with US Assistant Secretary for African Affairs Dr Jendayi Frazer.

She noted that a solution to the crisis could not be found through "dishing out political seats" as President Kibaki had been suggesting. She said fundamental challenges that triggered the unrest had to be addressed.

On January 5, President Kibaki invited Raila to a meeting at State House, Nairobi on January 12. It was intended "to restore peace and resolve political crisis".

But Raila said he would only attend the meeting if it was part of the negotiation process that Kufuor was expected to spearhead.

A frustrated President Kibaki then formed a coalition government with Mr Kalonzo Musyoka's ODM-Kenya on January 8.

Kalonzo was named Vice President in the "half-cabinet" comprising 17 ministers. This was seen as bait for ODM MPs who were hungry for Cabinet posts to jump ship and cut down the size of Raila's party.

Kufuor arrived on the same day to facilitate dialogue between the Government and the Opposition.

On January 9, Kufuor managed to talk with President Kibaki at State House, Nairobi and later with ODM leaders at Hotel Intercontinental. But Kufuor's mission flopped when President Kibaki and Raila failed to meet face-to-face to kick-off the dialogue.

The Ghanaian jetted out empty handed and passed the ball to Annan.

Former Presidents Mr Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia, Sir Ketumile Masire of Botswana and Mr Joacquim Chissano of Mozambique also came on January 12 to help end post-election chaos.

On January 18, Kibaki appointed a committee to spearhead national political dialogue — headed by Kalonzo.

The committee was to represent the Government in negotiations led by Annan.

It also comprised Internal Security minister Prof George Saitoti, Attorney General, Mr Amos Wako, Foreign Affairs minister, Mr Moses Wetangula and Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister, Ms Martha Karua. Others were Finance minister, Mr Amos Kimunya, Kanu chairman, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, Transport minister, Mr Ali Mwakwere and Mbooni MP, Mr Mutula Kilonzo.

ODM refused to work with the team. It accused Kalonzo of being a traitor.(judas iscariot).

Panel of eminent persons:

But Annan's arrival beamed a ray of hope. His team comprised Graca Machel, wife of former South African President Mr Nelson Mandela and former Tanzanian President Mr Benjamin Mkapa.

ODM and PNU selected four leaders each to form the National Dialogue Team to sit with Annan and his team.

PNU chose Karua, Education minister, Prof Sam Ongeri, and Kilonzo. Wetangula joined in later.

ODM chose Pentagon members, Mr Musalia Mudavadi and Mr William Ruto and Aldai MP, Dr Sally Kosgei, while Ugenya MP, Mr James Orengo, joined later.

The agenda of the Annan team was to ensure immediate stop to violence, restoration of fundamental rights and liberties and measures to be taken to address the unfolding humanitarian crisis and promotion of reconciliation and healing.

On political crisis, the issues would include power sharing, constitutional review and reform of the Electoral Commission of Kenya.

Annan's fourth agenda is the discussion of long-term issues and solutions.

The ice was broken when on January 24 Annan managed to bring Raila and President Kibaki together for the first time since the announcement of disputed presidential election results on December 30.

The two leaders shook hands at Harambee House, Nairobi, after a face-to-face meeting in the presence of Machel, Annan and Mkapa.

Annan brought the two leaders together again on January 29 at County Hall, Nairobi.

On February 1, the first signs emerged that progress was being made in the talks. The Government and ODM agreed to hold joint rallies to stop the escalating violence and restore basic human rights. This was after a 10-hour meeting of the team headed by Annan. They had agreed there should be freedom of assembly, expression and press, to help end political turmoil.

On February 8, President Kibaki and Raila agreed to share power but PNU insisted the President should call the shots. ODM wanted an interim government based on party strength in Parliament.

On February 12, Annan suggested that a grand coalition was the best way to tackle the dispute. He was speaking at a Speaker's Kamukunji at Old Parliament chambers.

His comment was not received well by the Government side, and the talks hit rough waters again.

Karua argued that no such agreement had been reached.

The team then moved to Kilaguni Serena Lodge to hammer out a final deal, which Annan had expected would be reached between 48 and 72 hours.

On February 15 he said: "I will not tire… I will be here as long as it takes to arrive at new Government. I will not be frustrated nor tire. I will pay the price of staying until we resolve the crisis". He was addressing an international press conference at the Serena Hotel in Nairobi after the retreat at Kilaguni.

At crucial and sensitive moments in the talks, the US, UK and the EU issued ultimatums that did not go down well with the Government.

On February 15, Bush said he was sending Rice to Kenya to deliver a message.

"In terms of Condi's visit, the key is that the leaders hear from her first hand that the US desires to see that there be a power sharing agreement that will help this nation resolve its difficulties," Bush said.

Rice arrived on February 18 and talked of governance structures for real power sharing.

The talks however almost collapsed when on February 26 a member of PNU team engaged the panel in heated exchanges.

The member made comments that stunned mediators and talks were suspended.

Annan then decided to engage with President Kibaki and Raila.

And as if in an orchestrated move, AU chairman and Tanzanian President, Mr Jakaya Kikwete, arrived on February 26. Two days later, Annan met Raila and President Kibaki to end a deadlock over the Prime Minister's post.

Kibaki had wanted the Prime Minister and his two deputies to be appointed under current laws while waiting for a comprehensive review of the Constitution while Raila wanted a proper power sharing deal.

POWER SHARING DEAL!

Key points of the Power sharing:

* There will be a Prime Minister of the Government of Kenya, with authority to coordinate and supervise the execution of the functions and affairs of the Government of Kenya.

* The Prime Minister will be an elected member of the National Assembly and the parliamentary leader of the largest party in the National Assembly, or of a coalition, if the largest party does not command a majority.

* Each member of the coalition shall nominate one person from the National Assembly to be appointed a Deputy Prime Minister.

* The Cabinet will consist of the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, the two Deputy Prime Ministers and the other Ministers. The removal of any Minister of the coalition will be subject to consultation and concurrence in writing by the leaders.

* The Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Ministers can only be removed if the National Assembly passes a motion of no confidence with a majority vote.