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President Kufuor to the rescue
in Kenya?
Kumasi, Jan. 5, Ghanadot/GNA – President John Agyekum Kufuor
on Saturday granted audience to a Special Envoy of Kenyan
President Mwai Kibaki, as diplomatic efforts to find
peaceful resolution of the East African country’s disputed
presidential election gathered momentum.
Protests over the Kenyan Leader’s December 27 re-election
snowballed into nasty ethnic clashes that had left about 300
dead and displaced tens of thousands of people.
Mr Moses Wetangula, the Envoy, who arrived in Accra aboard a
Kenyan Airway’s commercial flight, was flown to Kumasi,
where he briefed President Kufuor, the African Union (AU)
Chairman, on the political situation in his country and
extended formal invitation from President Kibaki to him to
support the Government and the Opposition to resolve the
crisis.
He said they wanted him to come over to have a first hand
feel of the political environment; meet with both parties
and help them to find a common ground to start a process of
dialogue and reconciliation.
The Envoy informed President Kufuor, who was on private
visit to his home, of the readiness of the Kenyan Leader to
form a Government of national unity, in which all would be
part.
Regarding the current political situation, he said things
were now getting better and that normalcy was being
restored.
He said public transportation that got completely paralyzed
by the election violence had started running.
President Kufuor described reports about the country’s
post-election chaos as disturbing and said dialogue should
be the means for resolving the dispute and to bring peace to
the country once perceived as a model of stability.
Resorting to violence, destruction of lives and property, he
said, was unacceptable and must be avoided.
The AU Chairman said what was happening in Kenya was of
concern not only to Africa but the rest of the world and
promised to extend a hand of co-operation to the Kenyan
Political Leadership to restore peace.
Kenya, the East African economic giant, came out of the
December elections badly scarred by violence over President
Kibaki’s re-election.
The main Opposition Leader, Raila Odinga refused to accept
defeat, claiming vote rigging.
Mr Wetangula, who was accompanied by Mr Franklin Esipila,
Kenyan Ambassador to Ethiopia and Ms Severin Luyali of the
Kenyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was earlier met on
arrival at the Kotoka International Airport by Mr Kwesi Osei
Adjei, Minister of Foreign Affairs, NEPAD and Regional
Integration, and some government officials.
GNA
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