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Kenya coalition talks in limbo
29/03/2008 09:18 - (SA)
Nairobi - Kenya's rival political blocs adjourned coalition negotiations on Friday amid divisions over the size of the government and distribution of portfolios, prime minister-designate Raila Odinga said.
Meanwhile, the current government said it might need $470m to pay for the bill of resettling many thousands of people driven from their homes in post-election violence.
Odinga said talks on the much-delayed formation of the cabinet - a key step in the power-sharing deal aimed at ending Kenya's violent crisis - yielded no consensus and had been indefinitely suspended.
"We also revisited the issue of the size of the cabinet and the allocation of portfolios to ODM and PNU. But we have been unable to reach a consensus so far," Odinga said, reading a statement at a press conference.
The ODM and PNU were Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement and President Mwai Kibaki's Party of National Unity.
"I don't say that the talks have broken down, not at all. As you know these negotiations take time ... they (PNU) are asking for this and we are asking for that, we will try to plug the gaps."
'We did not agree on anything'
Kibaki's office said in a statement that the talks "reviewed proposals on the formation of a cabinet" agreed on the previous meeting on Tuesday.
"It was agreed that there was need for further consultations," it added.
A deal was reached on February 28 after weeks of mediation led by former United Nations chief Kofi Annan, whereby President Mwai Kibaki's party and Odinga's movement evenly split the cabinet jobs.
"We finished talks but we did not agree on anything and not a day to resume talks ... we have given them our proposal and given them time to think about it," Odinga said.
Both sides had blamed each other for the deadlock, which had prompted Annan to get involved again, according to officials involved in the negotiations.
Odinga explained that they disagreed on the size of the cabinet. Kibaki was insisting on 44 ministers while Odinga wanted 34. Kibaki had already appointed 17 ministers in the current cabinet.
"A lean cabinet is necessary not only because we need to contain public expenditure at a time when there is such abject poverty and deprivation among our people, but also because a leaner cabinet can more efficiently deliver on the services and policies that Kenyans need," he added.
The Kibaki camp wanted to retain the finance and public service portfolios, a position that the ODM had refused to accept, because the two some of the most important, officials said.
"There is an impression being created in the media that we are haggling over ministries because somebody wants to eat. No, this is about service to the people of Kenya," he said.
"If we are in the government, we have to have a say in key ministries, we just do not want to be passengers in the government," Odinga added.
- AFP
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