Court stops DCI from summoning Matiang'i lawyer Danstan Omari over raid claims
Lawyer Danstan Omari at a past press briefing.
The High Court has suspended summons issued to Nairobi-based lawyer Danstan Omari requiring him to appear before the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) offices for interrogation on claims of police officers raiding former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i's Karen home.
Justice Jairus Ngaah, sitting at the Judicial Review Division in Milimani Nairobi, stayed the summons and allowed the lawyer to challenge the legality of the summons.
He was scheduled to appear before the DCI to give information in connection to the alleged invasion and raid of the residence of the Former Cabinet Secretary on February 8, 2023.
Requesting for the stay orders, Mr Omari said at the material time he had been engaged to render professional legal services by the former CS "who was under a real apprehension that the respondents had set out to arrest him in the wee hours of night with a view of harassing him".
He had been hired through his law firm, Musyoki Mogaka & Company Advocates and he rendered the legal services by filing an application of anticipatory bail at the High Court.
"The information received by Mr Omari in the course of taking instructions was used to file the application which is actively pending before the High Court. It was not used in furtherance of any illegal or criminal activity," said Mr Omari's lawyer Dorcas Mwae.
She stated that actions of investigating Mr Omari and Mr Matiang'i for information and opinions given through a live TV interview/broadcast is contrary to the provisions under Article 34(2)(b) of the Constitution, which provides that the state should not penalize any person for any opinion or view or the content of any broadcast, publication or dissemination.
"The Inspector-General of Police and the DCI are acting in bad faith as they are not acting on a legitimate complaint either by the client or any other complainant and there is no justification for commencing investigations against him," said lawyer Mwae.
She stated that the summons by DCI is an attempt to victimise an advocate "for a spirited defense of his client and is only meant to harass, silence and intimidate him, and by extension all Advocates of the High Court from exercising their noble duty of advancing the rule of law".
"Quite telling is the fact that neither the client nor former Prime Minister Raila Odinga have been summoned to record their statements despite the latter addressing the media on the night of the raid. The Respondents have only singled out an Advocate who was rendering professional legal services," she said.
In addition, that the summon is an affront to functionality of advocates by intruding to the privileged information they receive from their clients.
Ms Mwale also said the summon is an attempt to intimidate advocates who take up politically instigated cases to divulge information touching on their client pleas and atrocities.
The case will be mentioned on March 8, 2023 for further directions.
