KENYA: PRESIDENT MOI TO MEET WITH IMF AND WORLD BANK TO SECURE LOAN

Описание: (28 Aug 1997) English/Nat

Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi will meet with representatives from the International Monetary Fund and World Bank on Thursday in an attempt to seek agreement on a crucial loan.

The I-M-F loan was suspended in July after the government was unwilling to act on corruption, bad governance and economic reforms.

Meanwhile opposition politicians were expected to hold further demonstrations Thursday demanding constitutional and legal reforms.

Opposition politicians gathered here to discuss their next move in Kenya's political debate.

The Kenyan reformists seek the repeal of 12 acts, some of which
date from the British colonial era. The legislation limits freedom
of speech and assembly and permits indefinite detention of people
without charge.

They say free and fair elections are impossible because the laws
are stacked in favour of the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU) and President Daniel arap Moi.

The opposition groups have decided to form a parallel government because they said KANU had turned a deaf ear to their calls for dialogue.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"If Moi forces elections without reforms, there is no question about it, there will be civil war, the only thing I don't know is when it will come, It might be before the elections, during the elections or after the elections, but that I am quite convinced about."
SUPER CAPTION: Paul Muite, member of parliament

Recent unrest on the Indian Ocean coast has left more than 40 people dead.

The opposition has held several rallies demanding reforms and at their meeting said they would undertake mass action targeted at making the country ungovernable.

But some people believe it is a mistake to simply blame Moi.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"We have concentrated the problems of Kenya in one person, and that's President Moi. I think it is erroneous, it's wrong. And once we do that we end up being like Somalia. Somalis concentrated the problems of Somalia on one person, Said Barre. The removal of Said Barre did not bring peace to Somalia."
SUPER CAPTION: Karanja Njoroge, Director Institute for Democratic Development

73-year-old Moi has ruled Kenya for 19 years and is seeking a fifth, five-year term.

Liberalization of the economy is closely linked to the simmering
political tensions in the country.

President Moi is under a lot of pressure from international donors to enact legal and constitutional reforms before the elections.

I-M-F Representative Reimer Carstens said the I-M-F wanted hard evidence, not just verbal guarantees, that Kenya has tackled high level corruption and economic mismanagement and improved good governance.

Only then will it release part of the 220 (m) million dollar loan suspended July 31.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"Well it depends of course, on when these issues will be actually resolved here. As you know governance issues you cannot resolve one week to another. I mean it takes time, a little bit, and determination
and considerable effort on the part of the government."
SUPER CAPTION: Reimer Carsten, IMF Country Representative

President Moi had initially opposed any talk of pre-election reforms, arguing there was no time to discuss and enact them.

But the I-M-F's lending cut created a 120 (m) million dollar shortfall in the Kenyan budget. It also battered investor confidence and sent the
shilling plunging against the dollar.

The government was also forced to rewrite the budget and raise taxes on consumer goods.

Director Michel Camdessus last week and said he was willing
to talk.

SOUNDBITE: (English)


Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter:   / ap_archive  
Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​
Instagram:   / apnews  


You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...