Uhuru's olive branch welcome, NASA should now pick the cue

Uhuru Kenyatta, Raila Odinga, Senator Moses Wetang’ula and William Ruto at State House, Nairobi, on May 31, 2016. (Photo: Courtesy)

It might have started to dawn on both sides of the political divide that talking to, as opposed to talking at each other and softening hard-line positions is the way forward.

This has been the call of many Kenyans pained with the direction that political grandstanding between the ruling Jubilee party and the opposition National Super Alliance had cast the country. At no other time has the country been so polarised.

While President Uhuru Kenyatta has taken the initiative to call on the Opposition to a round-table discussion on the future of the country, the earlier threat by the Opposition to swear in Raila Odinga on the day President Uhuru Kenyatta was sworn in has been dropped.

Indeed, this is a good sign as it precludes more trouble as witnessed a few days ago. However, the Opposition has studiously refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of President Uhuru; that’s the elephant in the room.

As a demonstration of its resolve, the Opposition will be holding a rally at the Jacaranda Gardens tomorrow in honour of those said to have been killed by the police on November 17 after Raila’s welcome by his supporters on his return from the US turned chaotic.

But while holding mass for the departed is the right thing to do, the choice of the date could as well point to some mischief.

The police, on the other hand, have indicated they will not allow the Opposition’s rally. Clearly, this is a set-up for more confrontation on a day that should otherwise be serene.

Time has come for personal and political differences among the political elite to be cast aside in the interest of Kenyans who cannot afford to be at war with each other interminably yet hope to build a prosperous country for posterity.

The cost of the grandstanding in terms of loss of life and business is alarming, demanding that everything possible be done to turn the tide.

While it is an imperative for President Uhuru to rein his combative lieutenants who have a knack for making bad situations worse, the Opposition should reconsider its secession and boycott calls, for they can only destabilise a country painstakingly built over the past 50 years. Only dialogue can get us out of this political rut.