By Duncan Miriri and Daniel Wallis
NAIROBI (Reuters) - Negotiators for Kenya's politicalrivals broke off talks on the post-election crisis for theweekend on Friday despite growing local and international callsfor a quick deal.
With negotiations now hinging on the details of a new primeminister's post to be offered to opposition leader Raila Odingain a power-sharing agreement with President Mwai Kibaki, thetwo sides said they would resume on Monday.
"All of us realise that we don't have an opportunity toescape from solving the problems that plague this country,"opposition negotiator William Ruto said on his way out of themediation talks led by former U.N. boss Kofi Annan.
Africa's top diplomat, Jean Ping, spent Friday in Kenya totry and help push the parties into a deal after the governmentagreed in principle this week to create the premier's post. Thesticking point is how much power that position will command.
"We hope that next week we'll have something which can beagreed," Ping, the newly elected African Union Commissionchairman, told reporters.
The opposition wants a powerful role as executive premierfor Odinga, who accuses Kibaki of rigging the December 27 poll.
Kibaki's team says he won fairly and accuses the oppositionof instigating riots and ethnic violence that killed 1,000people, displaced 300,000 and wrecked Kenya's image as a stablebusiness, tourism and transport hub.
Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) has withdrawn anearlier call for Kibaki to resign, but is threatening to resumestreet protests if its demands are not met.
"If by Wednesday ... no tangible outcome is achieved fromthe mediation process, party members are hereby called upon toprepare for immediate mass civil disobedience," ODM member ofparliament Ababu Namwamba told a news conference.
ANNAN UPBEAT
Despite the ultimatum, chief mediator Kofi Annan said hewas beginning to see "light at the end of the tunnel".
The government has predicted a settlement in days.
Ping, elected at an AU summit in Ethiopia this month, isthe latest in a succession of high-powered visitors who havepushed Kenyan leaders towards common ground.
"I am confident ... things are moving towards a gooddirection," he said after meeting the opposition and Kibaki.
Pressure has grown on both sides of the political divide toreach a lasting deal to end turmoil that has horrified locals,neighbouring states and world powers alike.
"The most effective way to get these issues solved is forthe leaders to feel pressure from their own people," U.S.President George W. Bush said on his way home from an Africatour where the crisis was on high on the agenda.
"We'll help. We send people over and we'll stay engaged."
Odinga left Kenya on Friday on a private trip to Nigeria,but that was not expected to have a bearing on the talks. Hetold local radio there he was just visiting friends.
Although the east African nation has been relatively calmfor a fortnight, the ODM protests ultimatum has stoked fears ofa resumption of the post-election bloodshed.
Earlier demonstrations often descended into looting andtribal attacks, and were met with a tough police response.
The crisis has laid bare issues of land, ethnicity, wealthand power that have plagued Kenya since British colonial rule,and have often been exploited by politicians since then.
(Additional reporting by Helen Nyambura-Mwaura and WanguiKanina, Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
(For special coverage from Reuters on Kenya's crisis see:http://africa.reuters.com/elections/kenya/)
