Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has called for an independent commission to review the results of Kenya's disputed polls and said a coalition government was needed to resolve the country's political woes, according to dpa. Annan, who was briefing parliament in a special session, said by Friday rival politicians should agree to a political settlement, seen as the best hope to return stability to the East African nation after disputed elections in December set off a wave of violence. Annan's mediation efforts have led teams representing President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga to agree on how to end the violence and address the humanitarian crisis crippling the country, but they have yet to come to a political solution. "We have agreed to establish an independent review committee that would be mandated to investigate all aspects of the 2007 presidential election and would make findings and recommendations to improve the electoral process," he told lawmakers. An interim coalition government looks to be the most viable option, but how the government will be formed still needs clarification, and with both sides putting forth very different demands, it's questionable if three days is enough time to find a solution. Odinga's negotiators are calling for a prime ministerial post with executive powers that would lessen the president's while Kibaki's side has demanded no change to the president's role as head of state and government.
