Unpaid hotel bills mar Somali talks

Many delegates want to retain their expense-paid life in Eldoret

Auditors have been called in to look into $3.75m of unpaid bills accrued by the Somali peace talks in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret.

The talks have become so bogged down by overspending - especially at hotels - that in an attempt to cut costs they are being moved to the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, at the weekend.

Bethuel Kiplagat, the new chief mediator of talks, said that there had been a "lot of rumours" about corruption so accountants from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Kenyan Foreign Ministry would examine the bills.

The talks have made little progress since they began in October and have been plagued by disputes.

Mr Kiplagat was appointed by new Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki on 20 January, replacing Elijah Mwangale, an appointee of former President Daniel arap Moi, who has been accused by Somali delegates of corruption and mismanagement.

Departure

Kenya's Government is supposed to pay expenses accrued at the talks, including the hotel bills, and then seek reimbursement from donors including the United States and European Union.

AP news agency says more than $1.3m has already been paid out on the talks.

More than 800 Somalis when to Eldoret as delegates when the talks began and booked into hotel rooms.

Organisers have been trying to halve that number of delegates.

Fighting has continued around the country despite a cease-fire agreement signed in November by the transitional national government and faction leaders during the first phase of the Eldoret talks.

More than a dozen attempts to broker peace in Somalia have failed since President Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991.