Nairobi - Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki on Wednesday announced the formation of a government of national unity, bringing several opposition politicians into an administration that has been beset by squabbling since it came to power 18 months ago.
Announcing the cabinet reshuffle and administrative rearrangements in a live television broadcast, Kibaki appointed several members of the opposition Kenya African National Union (KANU) party to what he called a "government of national unity", two of them to cabinet positions.
In the December 2002 general elections, Kibaki's National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) demolished KANU, then led by long-standing president Daniel arap Moi, which had ruled since independence from Britain in 1963.
Kibaki also gave the post of energy minister to the head of another political party which kept out of the opposition alliance forged before the polls.
While NARC has taken some steps to counter the corruption that was endemic under KANU, it has failed to fulfill the expectations of Kenyans when it came to kick-starting the economy and delivering a new constitution.
In his speech, Kibaki recognised that the divisive tribal nature of Kenyan politics had hampered the country's achievements and blocked progress with the constitutional review, which is chiefly designed to water down the enormous powers enjoyed by the head of state.
"A strong social fabric can never be tailored along narrow ethnic interests. The leadership of Kenya must reflect the entire people of Kenya," Kibaki said. - Sapa-AFP