Move with speed and resolve IEBC impasse before it is too late

Intrigues over the besieged Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission are getting deeper. Yet again, a demonstrator was shot and killed in Kisumu during the Monday demonstrations that turned ugly.

At least 20 other people were hospitalised with bullet wounds even as a minor had to undergo surgery to remove a bullet lodged in his back at a Kisumu hospital.

The tally of those that have been killed in the violence comes to four. The level of destruction and losses incurred continue to rise. While this should have jolted our leaders out of the stupor they evidently are in, both sides continue to dig in.

The Opposition threatens to step up the demonstrations to two days a week and possibly four if the Government does not agree to dialogue.

On the other hand, the Government insists no talks will be made outside Parliament because the Constitution is clear on the modalities of choosing and removing constitutional office holders from office.

With both sides having dug in for the long haul, the implication is that the level of unease, tension, destruction and business losses will be heightened in the coming weeks.

The question therefore is; can we afford it? Already, the Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance Carole Kariuki has said the business fraternity lost millions on the first four Mondays of the anti-IEBC rallies. It does not bear to think of the overall effect on the economy if this continues.

Kenyans cannot continue to operate under an atmosphere of fear and despondency as a consequence of a tussle between their leaders, even in the face of compelling evidence that action needs to be taken now to avoid serious consequences later.

It is too soon to forget the ignominy of the 2007/2008 post-election violence when Kenyans were pitted against each other after either side of the political divide refused to dialogue.

By the time leaders came to their senses, almost 1,300 Kenyans had lost their lives in the orgy of killings. More than 600,000 others were displaced by the violence even as they lost property worth of millions.

The tragedy is that the experience of 2007/2008 has not taught our leaders anything. We are getting into another electioneering period in slightly over a year yet rather than douse the small fires being lit up now, leaders are actually stalking the embers of fire that will ignite into a gigantic fireball in 2017.

Clearly, Kenyans don't need that.

Kenya, as often said, is bigger than any individual, their status in life notwithstanding. This newspapers position is that to chart a way forward, dialogue is inevitable. And that this is no time to moralise about the Constitution.

The composition of the IEBC is a national concern, and with many leaders having expressed their dissatisfaction with the current office holders over matters of integrity, the matter cannot be swept under the carpet.

A cross-section of Kenyans from the legal fraternity (LSK), political parties, civil society and the Church have expressed their interest in the formation of an acceptable IEBC. It is up to President Uhuru Kenyatta to take the initiative and put the country back on course.

This grandstanding can only hurt the country more.