The Tiger Licking Kibaki's face

I've read an interesting article in The Sunday Nation in which the writer is saying the Electoral Commission of Kenya should be nowhere near the ballots being cast in this Wednesday's by-elections. For the first time since the barrage of condemnation began, I got to read someone explaining the process through which Kivuitu and his catankerous team could be removed from office.

You see, the Electoral Commissioners are constitutional offices, so they can only be removed by the President after a tribunal finds them incompetent, or if they resign (which Kivuitu says he won't), or by death (which they continue to defy). I would prefer resignations, but since they will not go quietly, let's give (alleged?) President Kibaki the option of showing them the door.

Unfortunately, that is not likely to happen for a very simple reason. It would open a can of worms, like Kibaki admitting he was elected fraudulently, that the pressure he or his men put on Kivuitu triggered the violence in which hundreds died, and that he has no option but to go home and shower.

It would take a lot of courage for Kibaki to send Kivuitu home. Kibaki is known for many things, but courage is not one of them. So we are stuck with Kivuitu. Love him or hate him, he will preside over the by-elections on Wednesday.

Kivuitu and his team remain like a tiger licking Kibaki's face. If he attempts to throw them out, he risks a very nasty maul. If he doesn't, he must contend with very foul breath and sharp claws.