Kenya’s Coalition Minister Resigns

 By Sylvester Oluoch
AjabuAfrica.com

Nairobi, Kenya. April 6, 2009 - Martha Karua, the minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs in Kenya's nascent Grand Coalition Government has resigned.

At a press conference in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, today, Karua cited frustration in reforms and the undermining of her docket as having made her position in government untenable.

According to the Daily Nation, Karua’s frustrations in government were exacerbated with President Mwai Kibaki’s appointment of five new High Court judges last Friday and promotion of two others to the Court of Appeal without her knowledge. She said President Kibaki did not inform or consult her on the appointments.

Karua is the first Kenyan minister to resign from the Grand Coalition Government that has been widely seen as having been hurriedly cobbled to stem the violence that rocked Kenya following the disputed December 2007 presidential elections.

   Karua’s exit from the Grand Coalition Government, which she helped piece together, is quite telling. Her departure does not only expose the coalition's soft and gullible underbelly, but also goes a long way in foretelling the intrigues that could follow in the days to come.

  Karua shared the sentiment that some of her colleagues were standing in the way of reforms. Raila Odinga, Kenya’s prime minister and leader of the Orange Democratic Movement or ODM, wing of the coalition also cited similar reasons over the weekend when he walked out of reform and healing talks.

Martha Karua, Kenya's minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs socializes with Kenyans living in the USA during a visit accompanying the Kenyan President, H.E. Mwai Kibaki to attend the 43 rd UN General Assembly in New York last year.

  If Karua’s performance at the negotiations that followed the post-election violence early last year is anything to go by, President Kibaki has lost an adept supporter and a solid defender.

  Karua’s exit doesn’t mark an end in itself. It signals the beginning of Kenya's ride in a new political terrain. Her choice of Embu to launch her unofficial membership to government opposition made two clear points: That she is not merely a "home girl" seeking leadership in Central Kenya; and that regardless of what happened around election time, Karua shares the sentiment of Kenyans on matters of reform agenda.

This leads us to the all important point. Karua referred to her party as Narc-Kenya, not Party of National Unity or PNU, and she has been doing this in other forums lately. This could be her way to disentangle herself from PNU.

The other point is that this bleeding - the loss of a major political blood for PNU, inevitably, causes it a painful hemorrhage.

Could this be a launch pad for 2012 presidential politics, or solidarity with the people, or simply a godsend for Raila Odinga's ODM, PNU's coalition partner?

For more news, click here