Bishops ask Kibaki, Raila to embrace talks over standoff

By Martin Mutua and Antony Gitonga

Nairobi Catholic Archbishop John Cardinal Njue kicked off the Lent season with a special appeal to Catholics to pray for President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga to can agree and work together.

Describing the disagreements between the principals as worrying, Njue told faithful, who had converged for the Ash Wednesday Mass at the Holy Family Basilica that to pray for the country during these trying moments.

"We need to pray for our country and particularly for President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga so that they work together," he said.

He also told the two principals they must recognise the amount of responsibility they have, since the buck stopped with them.

The primate noted there was no difference so big that it cannot be solved, but pointed out that it was up to the two to agree.

"The buck stops with the two and if they do not agree, then it means they are going to cause unnecessary tension in the country," he added.

At the same time, the Ufungamano group of religious leaders has expressed concern over the crisis by the two principals, saying it has the potential to destabilise the nation.

They said the restoration of peace after post-election violence was predicated on the good working relations between the coalition partners.

"We call upon the President and Prime Minister to rise above personal interests and party machinations and work for what is best for the nation," said National Council of Churches of Kenya Secretary General Peter Karanja, who read the statement on their behalf.

And 12 bishops have also urged Kibaki and Raila to dialogue over the current crisis in the coalition.

The clerics, from evangelical churches in Central, Nyanza and Rift Valley provinces, said the crisis in the Coalition Government was a threat to national security.

Bloodshed

Bishop Jackson Kosgei from Rift Valley said the country could not afford more bloodshed because of differences between the two principals.

"We don’t not want to say who is right, but the National Accord should be respected as this is the instrument that has helped put the nation together," he said.

They said they were perturbed by the impasse in the Government over corruption.

Addressing the Press in a Naivasha hotel, the clergy called on Kibaki and Raila to put the interests of Kenyans first and give dialogue a chance.

They dismissed those asking the former UN Secretary-Genera Kofi Annan to step in and resolve the standoff, saying Kenyans could solve their own problems without involving outsiders.

Dr Kosgei urged the international community to sustain pressure on the coalition partners to follow the National Accord and end impunity.

Bishop Peter Njenga from Central urged Kenyans to approach the matter with calmness and sobriety.

"The potential of the crisis to derail our collective efforts towards peace building can’t be gainsaid," he said.

Bishop Winnie Owiti from Nyanza dismissed calls for Annan to intervene, terming the crisis manageable.

"The two principals should always have dialogue because it is sad to see different statements coming from them on the same issue," she said.

Centre for Multi-party Democracy sponsored the meeting by the bishops, who met at Simba Lodge in Naivasha to promote peace and dialogue.

They reviewed progress of the initiative over the past 18 months and plan for the next phase of engagement during the meeting.

They said despite the challenges that confronted the country during post-election violence, Kenyans could still to work and live together.