US offers help for Uhuru’s first major crisis

By EMMANUEL WERE

“This was a simple fire gone bad,” with those words President Uhuru Kenyatta ruled out the possibility of terrorism on the fire that broke out on August 7, at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi.

The inferno consumed the international arrivals terminal as investigators lay blame on fire fighters for their laxity in responding to the crisis.  But this was President Kenyatta’s first major international crisis since he took office on April 9.

There have been a series of crisis like the teachers strike, the cold war with Raila and Kalonzo and the tiff with the governors.

All these were domestic matters, which have been sorted one way or another.

The fire though has presented the President, with a perfect opportunity to re-build burned bridges and test the resolve of Western nations.

The US, which has handled the Head of State with kid gloves, because of his pending cases at the International Criminal Court, has been at the forefront leading the investigations.

FBI agents were busy combing the scene of the fire and taking photographic evidence on Friday.

The US still remains an important partner despite the cold should President Obama gave Kenya on his recent tour of the continent.

And America is possibly one of the “friendly governments to get this important regional hub back to full operations”. Kenya will after all remain a key allay for the West and US.

China, which is involved in the construction of the fourth terminal, might come in to play a hand in the construction of a temporary terminal which will handle 2.5 million passengers.