Waiting and Seeing

The storm clouds have been gathering for a few days. Last week the opposition ODM said they would hold “peaceful” demonstrations on Thursday. Meanwhile, Kofi Annan has been looking increasingly like someone who thought he would have been back in time to be guest of honour at the African Cup of Nations final. His rather terse statement, sent by text last night, sounded like a teacher trying to get two stubborn toddlers to hold hands…

“I believe that the Panel of Eminent African Personalities working with the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation has done its work. I’m now asking the party leaders, Hon Raila Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki to do theirs.”

The talks that have been going nowhere slowly are suddenly going nowhere pretty fast.
And as if we needed any further confirmation that things were on the brink of meltdown, I’m suddenly getting calls from colleagues in Joburg asking if they should be on the next plane into Nairobi.
I don’t know why they ask me. My folks have just arrived for a holiday after I assured them we were over the worst.