Laikipia: Former MP Matthew Lempurkel denies hate speech charges
Former Laikipia North MP Mathew Lempurkel before a Milimani Court on September 9, 2021.
Former Laikipia North MP Mathew Lempurkel has denied hate speech charges a day after his arrest over clashes in Laikipia County.
Mr Lempurkel was on Wednesday arrested at his Ongata Rongai home for questioning over the matter, Rift Valley Regional Coordinator George Natembeya said.
The arrest came as tension continued to build in the area that has been ravaged by insecurity.
The ex-legislator was charged Thursday in connection to attacks on communities which have resulted in several deaths.
He appeared before Milimani senior resident magistrate Sinkiyian Tobiko after spending a night at Capitol Hill Police Station in Nairobi, and was released on a cash bail of Sh150,000.
On Wednesday, Ms Tobiko declined a plea by police to detain the politician for 14 days, saying the offences being investigated were committed two months ago.
She questioned why security agencies sprang into action a day after Mr Lempurkel and other Maa leaders met Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i and other security chiefs to discuss the Laikipia skirmishes.
In court on Thursday, the magistrate urged defence lawyers Thomas Otieno Kajwang, Saitabao ole Kanchory and Harun Ndubi to take notice that the issues affecting Laikipia are the result of historical injustices and land issues, which need to be addressed at a national level.
Charges questioned
Ms Tobiko heard that hundreds of people have been forced to flee from their homes as a result of the fighting, allegedly due to the former MP’s utterance aired on a local television station between July 11 and 17.
Mr Lempurkel is accused of urging the Maasai community in Laikipia to rise up against owners of ranches and conservancies in the county.
In his arguments, Mr Ndubi said the words in the charge sheet were authored by officers in the Director of Public Prosecution’s office, and were not the exact words uttered by his client on a Maa TV show.
The lawyer also noted that the actual words which were translated by officers of the National Cohesion and Integration (NCI) had not been stated.
He further told the court that the charge has mutated from murder, robbery with violence, stealing cattle and destruction of property to hate speech.
This charge is a misdemeanor whose penalty is a fine not exceeding Sh1million, or a jail term of not more than three years, he also said, adding the defence team will challenge the validity of the charge at a later stage.
Other arguments
Mr Kanchory urged the magistrate to release the former MP, saying he is not a flight risk.
He added that the accused is jobless hence has no income and is badly affected by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mr Kajwang noted that the drought, which forced hundreds of Samburu herdsmen out of their original homes in search of pasture for their animals, has since been declared a national disaster.
He added, “I urge the court to consider the section of the charge sheet which talks about grass and land owned by investors and the Maa community while determining his bail, which has not been opposed by the prosecution.”
The State prosecutor told the magistrate that a new charge may be filed against Mr Lempurkel upon completion of investigations.
Former Laikipia North MP Mathew Lempurkel before a Milimani Court on September 9, 2021.
Ms Tobiko released the accused on a cash bail of Sh150,000 and directed him to submit details of his residences.
The case will be mentioned before senior principal magistrate Bernard Ochoi on September for issuing of pretrial directions.
