I believe the President and his deputy ("dynamic duo" à la Ubako)
have a God-sent opportunity to not only reshape the destiny of this nation but to
change the perspective that the international community, their detractors and
the civil society have about them. If I had the chance to be either of them I
would focus on a number of issues.
One of the areas that I would focus on is National Healing and Cohesion. The country underwent a very divisive campaign and electoral period
and in some quarters the emotions are still very high after they lost out in
the plebiscite and the subsequent petition. The nation has also since the
colonial time undergone some very difficult times during which a lot of
injustices were committed by the ruling elite and their cohorts. Urgent
national healing is required so that the supporters of those that lost out can
feel that indeed they are still part of this great Nation. I would thus
recommend a Peace, Healing and Cohesion Initiative to be undertaken by the current
constitutional bodies that we have in place such as NCIC, TJRC, KHREC, CAJ and
NGEC. I would also ensure that the TJRC commission report is speedily received
(this has already happened), released to the
public in its entirety (thanks to the commission we
don’t have to wait for the president to do so) and recommendations of
the report put into action of course through public involvement and
participation (with main political players across
the divide adversely mentioned I await to see delivery of justice and
reconciliation). I would also ensure that other reports by commissions
of inquiry are released for public consumption and recommendations adequately addressed.
As a way of addressing historical injustices and bringing about national
healing, I would also embark on speedy resettlement of all genuine IDPs and
ensure they are appropriately and adequately compensated for their losses.
