ALLIES of Deputy President William Ruto are
demanding the removal of some senior government officials because they
allegedly denied Ruto access to information he needed to defend himself
at the ICC.
Ruto's lawyers requested officials in the Office of the President to
give them evidence from the National Security Intelligence Service (now
NIS) but they were refused.
"The DP's team wanted that information which was gathered by NIS and
presented to the Waki Commission. It was held by some other officers in
the Office of the President but these people decided not to give us the
information. How can you deny the Deputy President information? So who
are they loyal to if they are not loyal to the Deputy President? It is
unacceptable," said an MP close to Ruto.
In an attempt to clear itself of allegations of negligence around the
disputed election on December 27, 2007, the NIS may have unwittingly
bolstered the ICC case against Ruto and other suspects.
The NSIS reportedly provided minutes of provincial security meetings
dating from 2007/8 and other evidence to the commission of enquiry into
post-election violence headed by Justice Philip Waki in 2008.
In their testimonies to the Waki commission, security officials
including Gichangi said the spy agency had gathered intelligence on
individuals who organised gangs of Mungiki and Kalenjin before and after
the election.
On July 21, 2008, Gichangi testified that the NSIS had names of
politicians who bankrolled the militias and requested to reveal their
identities in private.
"We established they were politicians who were seeking elective posts
as civic leaders and Members of Parliament as well as others from the
private sector but, because of the sensitivity of the matter, we will
avail that brief to the commissioners in private," the NSIS boss said.
Gichangi also told the Waki Commission that youths took oaths to
commit atrocities after the election with blessings from politicians. He
said politicians had sometimes used coded language, asking their people
to rise up and get rid of some communities.
"I want to tell them that we did our part, but the State security
agents failed to respond as expected because they were overwhelmed by
the magnitude of the violence," Gichangi told Waki.
The Waki Commission report also revealed that the NSIS collected
information on the planning of violence in Naivasha by Mungiki members
and politicians at local and national level.
The NSIS evidence was included in the Waki report as Exhibits 19 and
19A but was not made public. Ruto's allies now reportedly want to
replace the NIS boss General Michael Gichangi.
Unconfirmed reports also indicate that Gichangi is lined up to be the
President Uhuru Kenyatta's witness at the ICC when his trial begin next
year in February.
Over the weekend Kericho senator Charles Keter called for the
resignation of senior officials whom he said identified and coached
witnesses against Ruto.
He did not name names but it is generally understood that Keter was
referring to Interior PS Mutea Iringo and presidential chief political
adviser Nancy Gitau among others. Ruto's lawyers alleged last week in
The Hague that they were involved in the collection of evidence against
him in 2008.
SCROLL DOWN TO LEAVE A COMMENT
No comments:
Post a Comment