NAIROBI, Jan 4: South African Nobel peace laureate Desmond Tutu on Friday said President Mwai Kibaki was open to a coalition government with his opposition foes in a bid to break the political deadlock.

“There is a great deal of hope since both the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and government have indicated they are open to negotiations,” the cleric told reporters after talks with Kibaki.

“The president was not averse to the formation of coalitions – but clearly there has to be an acceptance that there is a governing authority in the country,” Tutu said.

Tutu arrived in the country on Wednesday in a bid to broker an end to the political crisis that erupted after the Dec 27 presidential poll.

Tutu said he was hopeful that both sides would resolve the crisis that has shaken the east African nation, usually a haven of stability in a region beset by conflicts.

On Thursday, the archbishop held talks with opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga, who says he was robbed of election victory by state-engineered rigging.

The electoral commission’s announcement on Sunday that Kibaki was the winner of the Dec 27 poll touched off riots and tribal violence across the country that have killed more than 355 people.

The ODM has demanded a re-run of the election within three months.—AFP