20091204

Nairobi — As the man who brokered the ceasefire to halt the carnage that engulfed Kenya in the wake of the 2007 elections catches up on developments during his ongoing visit, there are specific areas worth close attention.

Dr Kofi Annan will undoubtedly get the message in his meetings with President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga that the reform process designed to ensure sustainable peace and security is on track.

From some western embassies and the civil society groups they fund, Dr Annan will be told that Kenya is on the brink of collapse.

Between the two extremes, Dr Annan must source independent and credible information that can be relied on to present a picture not coloured by bias and self-interests. It will be important also that he seeks a fuller and more rounded analysis of the state of the nation.

The audit released by South Consulting last October, for instance, lauded the President and the Prime Minister for casting aside previous suspicions and working together.

The report, however, noted that cordial relations between the two principals had not permeated to their respective political parties, which continued to pull in different directions.

Since then, the situation has become even worse, because the constituent parties are themselves hit by splits that are taking on ugly ethnic dimensions.

Key leaders in both PNU and ODM are focusing more on shadow-boxing ahead of the 2012 elections.

While we may be putting hope on the draft constitution currently under debate, we also seem to be forgetting other processes crucial to repairing the torn national fabric.

There has been very little movement, for instance, since the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission and the National Cohesion and Integration Commission were inaugurated.

Both have critical roles to play in fostering peace, healing, forgiveness and reconciliation; and repairing the hatred, bitterness and suspicion that still blights relations between some ethnic groups.

A key task for Dr Annan might be on fast-tracking operationalisation of the two important bodies.

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