Why government has suspended probe on leaders linked to Lamu terror
Interior CS Kithure Kindiki during a visit at Nyayo House Immigration Department on September 1, 2023, following public outcry over delays in passport application process.
What you need to know:
- Four Muslim clerics, who are among 19 individuals listed by the Interior Ministry for questioning, turned up at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations headquarters in Mombasa.
- The leaders had been summoned over alleged incitement and inflammatory remarks that was linked to the recent wave of attacks in some villages in the county.
The government has suspended interrogations of community leaders in Lamu who were being investigated for alleged incitement.
Four Muslim clerics, who are among 19 individuals listed by the Interior Ministry for questioning, turned up at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations headquarters in Mombasa on Thursday 14 December 2023, but did not record any statements as expected.
The leaders had been summoned to appear before the DCI record statements over alleged incitement and inflammatory remarks that Interior Ministry CS Kithure Kindiki linked to the recent wave of attacks in some villages in the county.
According to their lawyer Abubakar Yusuf, they had earlier been summoned to record their statements in Lamu but later on referred to Mombasa.
“Today (Thursday) we arrived at 9 am according to the summons only to be told that they have been cancelled and a statement will be written to that effect. We are reading malice in this. They have incurred losses in terms of travel expenses and it’s not right,” said Mr Abubakar.
The lawyer also called on the government to protect them and ensure their safety after linking them to murders that had been witnessed in Lamu.
Coast Regional Criminal Investigation Officer Ali Samatar confirmed that the matter has been temporarily suspended.
He also confirmed that the group arrived at the DCI headquarters but did not record any statements.
“We have postponed the matter for now to handle other issues,” said Mr Samatar.
Speaking during a tour of Lamu County on Tuesday last week, CS Kindiki said the 19 names which included individuals of diverse communities and companies, were required to avail themselves to security officers within seven days for interrogations and to explain why they feel they should not be enlisted as terror associates.
They were further required to write responses and either send them through email or by hand delivery to Jogoo House.
The move elicited mixed reactions with a section of leaders urging that the matter be dealt with carefully lest it cause divisions in the community.
“The Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome has notified all the suspects who are required to show up and explain why they feel they aren’t associated with terrorism. If they fail to do so within seven days, we will proceed to declare them as terrorist associates and have their names listed across the world,” Prof Kindiki said.
While at the DCI headquarters in Kizingo, one of the summoned leaders Omar Sharrif said they have no issue living with other communities in the region.
