Cracks In ODM Over Waki Report

The myth of the show of unity in Kenya's Orange Democratic Movement Party (ODM) after a show of unity by the party's Parliamentary Group (PG) a week ago over the Waki report on the post-election violence was broken after the party's top decision-making organ, the National Executive Committee overruled the PGs decision to reject the report.

While this came as a reprieve for the party after countrywide condemnation of the earlier position, it set the party up for a split down the middle. Most ODM MPs, especially from the Rift Valley province, suspect that their names are included in the Waki list of 10 names handed over to Kofi Annan for prosecution by a local tribunal facilitated by parliament and appointed by the president, failing which the case will be taken over by the International Criminal Court (ICC) based at the Hague. This is the reason for great opposition of the report by the party.

The change of tack vindicates the Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, the party leader, who had indicated some support for his MPs despite his earlier call for full implementation of the report after it was handed over by the Waki commission.

Two reasons can explain this change of heart. One is that ODMs coalition partners, PNU, had earlier fully embraced the report and called for its full implementation, thereby projecting ODM as the guilty party, i.e. the guilty are always afraid. This projected ODM in bad light and the Executive committee had to work on reversing this image. Secondly, this was as a result of ODM leadership coming to their senses and realising that the report's implementation was an un-stoppable train. Waki had cleverly included clear escalation clauses if there were to be any roadblocks in the report's implementation.

As i have indicated before, Kenyans are prepared for whatever consequences that will occur with the implementation of the Waki report. Whether this will cause a break-up of the coalition government, ODM or PNU, even if we have to go for another election, so be it. We are ready. As the death of impunity in our country is finally in sight.