Ministers quit over Kenyan presidency

Four Kenyan government ministers resigned yesterday, saying they had lost confidence in President Daniel arap Moi because of a dispute over the ruling party's nominee in forthcoming presidential elections.

The Energy Minister, Raila Odinga, one of the four who resigned, said they had "resisted [Mr Moi's] attempts to impose" his hand-picked candidate, Uhuru Kenyatta, as the presidential nominee of the Kenya African National Union (Kanu) party.

But, "all our petitions, pleas and requests have fallen on deaf ears. We see that there is no possibility of reconciliation or compromise," said Mr Odinga, who had hoped to win the nomination. He was appointed Energy Minister last year.

Mr Kenyatta, the son of Kenya's first president, Jomo Kenyatta, was a relative political unknown before Mr Moi began pushing him for the nomination.

Mr Odinga is also the secretary general of Kanu, a post he assumed in March when the party he had led, the National Development Party, was absorbed by the ruling party. He remains the secretary general of Kanu and refused to discuss whether he planned to resign.

Mr Odinga was jailed by Mr Moi for a total of eight years without trial in the 1980s. His father, Oginga Odinga, was a principal rival of both Mr Moi and Jomo Kenyatta and was placed under house arrest during an attempted coup against Mr Moi in 1982.

The other ministers to resign were the assistant Education minister, Moody Awori, the Planning Minister, Adhu Awiti, who was also a presidential hopeful, and William Ole Ntimama, the minister of state in the office of the president.

Kanu is to hold its twice-postponed nominating convention today at which Uhuru Kenyatta is now expected to be named the party's presidential candidate.

On Friday, the deadline for Kanu members to file for nomination, Mr Odinga, Mr Awori, the recently sacked vice- president, George Saitoti, and the Tourism and Information Minister, Kalonzo Musyoka, said they would not seek the party's nomination.