Many things might
have changed with the promulgation of the Constitution in 2010. Some
have not. In the aftermath of the 2007 general election, politicians
realised that they had a tenuous hold on power, especially when it came
to their dealings with the Executive branch. Raila Odinga prominently
took the side of Maina Njenga while he was still a guest of the State at
the Naivasha prison and called on Mwai Kibaki's government to
"negotiate" with Maina Njenga's Mungiki sect. In time, Mr Njenga was
released from prison when it could not be proven that he was guilty of
the offences he had been sentenced for or the crimes he had been accused
of masterminding from behind bars. He was feted by the high and mighty,
including Mr Odinga, President Moi and Bishop Margaret Wanjiru. Today,
it is the turn of the Mombasa Republican Council.
It has received the tacit support of unnamed politicians at the Coast. One MP foolishly offered to support its lawful programmes, forgetting that until it registers itself as a society, it remains an unlawful organisation a realisation that the Executive arrived at when it used the provisions of the Societies Act to prosecute the officials of the group. Many Kenyans have very strong opinions on the legitimacy of the group. Many hate it for its calls to secession. Many sympathise with its positions, especially regarding the continued marginalisation of the peoples of the Coast. What is not in doubt is that Mwai Kibaki's government is determined to crush the organization, regardless of the political consequences going into the 2013 general election.
The MRC has been courted at various times by the presidential candidates, from Raila Odinga to Musalia Mudavadi. Even the indefatigable Kalonzo Musyoka has counselled talking to the group's leaders rather than coming down hard on them. Mwai Kibaki is not persuaded that his government can talk to the group while it continues to threaten the peace and tranquility that the Coast is famous for. His instructions to the security establishment have been clear: crush them. Matthew Iteere, the Commissioner of Police, has been only too happy to oblige. The early morning raid that led to the arrest of the MRC 'president' and his colleagues was a testament to Mr Iteere's interpretation of the presidential diktat. The scene commander during the arrest spoke on camera of having employed the "minimum power" necessary to effect the arrest, but we know better, don't we. The picture the arrested men and women showed when they were arraigned in court on weapons' possession charges tell a different story. Any time you deploy the dreaded GSU to effect an arrest, "minimum power" is not the phrase that comes to mind; rather it is a message from the Executive that we may have a new Constitution with an apparently iron-clad Bill of Rights, but the Executive will do what t takes to ensure that it is obeyed by one and all.
This was the same message that was broadcast by the Executive when it embarked on a campaign to tame the Mungiki. Prof Philip Alston, the UN's special rapporteur on extra-judicial killings, detailed the brutal manner in which the police went about the exercise of bringing the group to heel. Many lives were lost in what was effectively a campaign of terror, but in the end the Mungiki are not the threat they once were. Maina Njenga has chosen to dabble in faith-based activities and politics and his erstwhile acolytes have chosen a very low profile in their day-to-day affairs. Now it is the MRC's turn to face the full brunt of Mwai Kibaki's security apparatus.
Due process in Kenya has always been fungible. If you are rich enough, powerful enough, or well-connected enough, the State will bend over backwards in ensuring your rights are respected. This is why serving members of the government, be they in the Cabinet or in the National Assembly will always be treated with kid gloves whenever their names are connected with a criminal investigation. You will not hear of them having their homes raided in the wee hours of the morning. You will not see them being handcuffed and hauled off to police cells in the dead of night. Even Dr Willy Mutunga's courts will be happy to grant them bail in the shortest time possible if they happen to be arraigned in court. If you are poor, or you lack a political constituency of your own, or your connections prove less than robust, the experiences of the MRC and the Mungiki before it are an object lesson in what you should expect. Indeed, due process will only be on the lips of the armies of civil society doyens who campaign for your innocence. Everyone and his uncle knows that the MRC, barring a political miracle, is toast. It is just a question of how much damage the Executive will inflict before it is satisfied that it will not be defied again.
It has received the tacit support of unnamed politicians at the Coast. One MP foolishly offered to support its lawful programmes, forgetting that until it registers itself as a society, it remains an unlawful organisation a realisation that the Executive arrived at when it used the provisions of the Societies Act to prosecute the officials of the group. Many Kenyans have very strong opinions on the legitimacy of the group. Many hate it for its calls to secession. Many sympathise with its positions, especially regarding the continued marginalisation of the peoples of the Coast. What is not in doubt is that Mwai Kibaki's government is determined to crush the organization, regardless of the political consequences going into the 2013 general election.
The MRC has been courted at various times by the presidential candidates, from Raila Odinga to Musalia Mudavadi. Even the indefatigable Kalonzo Musyoka has counselled talking to the group's leaders rather than coming down hard on them. Mwai Kibaki is not persuaded that his government can talk to the group while it continues to threaten the peace and tranquility that the Coast is famous for. His instructions to the security establishment have been clear: crush them. Matthew Iteere, the Commissioner of Police, has been only too happy to oblige. The early morning raid that led to the arrest of the MRC 'president' and his colleagues was a testament to Mr Iteere's interpretation of the presidential diktat. The scene commander during the arrest spoke on camera of having employed the "minimum power" necessary to effect the arrest, but we know better, don't we. The picture the arrested men and women showed when they were arraigned in court on weapons' possession charges tell a different story. Any time you deploy the dreaded GSU to effect an arrest, "minimum power" is not the phrase that comes to mind; rather it is a message from the Executive that we may have a new Constitution with an apparently iron-clad Bill of Rights, but the Executive will do what t takes to ensure that it is obeyed by one and all.
This was the same message that was broadcast by the Executive when it embarked on a campaign to tame the Mungiki. Prof Philip Alston, the UN's special rapporteur on extra-judicial killings, detailed the brutal manner in which the police went about the exercise of bringing the group to heel. Many lives were lost in what was effectively a campaign of terror, but in the end the Mungiki are not the threat they once were. Maina Njenga has chosen to dabble in faith-based activities and politics and his erstwhile acolytes have chosen a very low profile in their day-to-day affairs. Now it is the MRC's turn to face the full brunt of Mwai Kibaki's security apparatus.
Due process in Kenya has always been fungible. If you are rich enough, powerful enough, or well-connected enough, the State will bend over backwards in ensuring your rights are respected. This is why serving members of the government, be they in the Cabinet or in the National Assembly will always be treated with kid gloves whenever their names are connected with a criminal investigation. You will not hear of them having their homes raided in the wee hours of the morning. You will not see them being handcuffed and hauled off to police cells in the dead of night. Even Dr Willy Mutunga's courts will be happy to grant them bail in the shortest time possible if they happen to be arraigned in court. If you are poor, or you lack a political constituency of your own, or your connections prove less than robust, the experiences of the MRC and the Mungiki before it are an object lesson in what you should expect. Indeed, due process will only be on the lips of the armies of civil society doyens who campaign for your innocence. Everyone and his uncle knows that the MRC, barring a political miracle, is toast. It is just a question of how much damage the Executive will inflict before it is satisfied that it will not be defied again.
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