Odinga evokes snap polls
2008-04-24 11:38
Berlin - Kenya's new Prime Minister Raila Odinga has evoked the possibility of snap polls in an interview due to appear on Thursday, saying he will review his participation in a power-sharing government.
The new cabinet, installed to end bloody unrest after contentious elections in December fuelled ethic tensions and claimed at least 1 500 lives, is planning to undertake a slew of constitutional and other reforms.
"When these reforms are in place, we will re-examine the situation," Odinga told the German daily Tagesspiegel.
"Then we will decide if we want fresh elections or if we will continue to be in the coalition" government, he said.
Odinga said direct democracy in the multi-ethnic country was exacerbating the problem with different ethnic groups competing to dominate the legislature, the daily reported in a summing-up of the interview.
Former UN boss Kofi Annan helped broker a power-sharing agreement under which opposition leader Odinga, who insists he was robbed of victory in December presidential elections by incumbent Mwai Kibaki, became prime minister.
Odinga's accusations of election fraud against Kibaki sparked tribal fighting, revenge killings and police crackdowns that displaced hundreds of thousands of Kenyans and rent the country's reputation as a beacon of stability in restive east Africa.