Fallout brewing? Muturi's candid stand on State's role in abductions

Public Service Cabinet Secretary, Justin Bedan Muturi is one of the few persons who has had the privilege of serving in all three arms of Government.

Muturi has served in the judiciary, legislature and is currently in the Executive in addition to the short stint he had as Attorney General under the Kenya Kwanza government.

On Sunday, Muturi, a key insider of Government, sent mixed reactions when he came out to do what a majority of people in his position would rather keep off, to point out arising issues.

Having been directly affected by abductions last year when his son suffered a similar fate, Muturi opened a can of worms when he questioned some of the Government’s actions.

“I have personally suffered as my son was abducted and disappeared…it should be remembered that I was the Attorney General of Kenya at the time, yet I was unable to trace my son despite making several request and demands to all levels of the security apparatus,” Muturi said.

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Muturi said he joined the Kenya Kwanza coalition owing to the fact that the principles that they espoused were in tandem with the arty he belongs to, the Democratic Party of Kenya (DP).

He revealed that many friends and political colleagues at the time warned him about joining the coalition but he was persuaded that he would be driven by the ideals that it stated as a hustler nation to do the best for Kenyans.

The CS said one of the things they accused the past regimes of was existence of disappearances and extra judicial killings and vowed to never, under Kenya Kwanza government’s watch, allow it to thrive but today, there has been a number of abductions and cases of unexplained deaths since Gen Z revolts.

About a week ago, the former National Assembly Speaker was in Embu where he was expected to deliver the President’s message of condolences but reading the mood of the people, he delivered it to the bereaved family.

While there, he said it would not be possible for the Government to say it did not know anything about abductions because that amounts to shunning responsibility on accountability, adding that he took issue with the statement by Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja that he did not know where abductees were.

“The Government cannot be excused for abdicating its duty of protecting the lives and property of people of Kenya,” he noted.

He said that the cardinal duty of the State and Government is to protect the lives and livelihood of its citizens and it cannot claim to be unaware of such serious breaches on the rights of Kenyans to live free from wrongful confinement and violations of their inalienable right to life.

“I have taken this unusual step so that the matter can be debated honestly and openly in the country with a view to finding a lasting solution to this issue which if left unchecked has the potential to plunge the country into chaos and anarchy,” he said.

Before the President dismissed him alongside the Cabinet last July, Muturi was already faulting some of the decisions made by the Kenya Kwanza Government.

For instance, Muturi said his office, despite being the principal legal advisor of the President, was not consulted on the deployment of the military to the streets and the conduct of police during protests.

“The deployment of the military to the streets was done without the advice of the Attorney General. I also can’t advise the police to go and shoot innocent kids in the streets,” he told The Standard last year.

Earlier the same year, he had also stated that appointments of some senior officers and bills find their way to Parliament without his approval.

But Muturi, during his vetting as CS for Public Service, clarified that he resigned from being the Attorney General position.

“It is true, indeed that I resigned, and there were reasons because as you would expect at the national executive level… and I know the country was alive to the fact that there had been some disquiet and the only honorable thing at that point in time to do was to take a position through a route that is provided for by law to provide the President an opportunity to reorganize his government as he desired,” he explained.

“Rather than allow a situation whereby you tie the President with the fact that certain things had not happened as provided for in law, I took the option of assisting him with the decision to do the alignment,” Muturi added.

Muturi, a key political confidant of former President Uhuru Kenyatta decamped from that side of the coalition and hit out at him for backing former Prime Minister, Raila Odinga in the build up to 2022 General Election.

He cited this as the main reason he politically fell out with Uhuru but clarified that they remained friend.

“I’m happy that after several conversations in this effort, we have realized the dream of working together. We in DP are quite happy to fully and unconditionally associate with Kenya Kwanza,” he said when he joined the Kenya Kwanza coalition.

The former Speaker stuck with Uhuru, including after 2002 elections when KANU was pushed to the opposition.

When Jubilee coalition was elected into office in 2013, led by Uhuru, Muturi took the seat of Speaker of the National Assembly.

Political analyst, Dennis Anyoka yesterday said that Muturi had taken a bold move by coming out to speak out in public, despite being a sitting Cabinet Secretary.

Being a sitting CS, he said that it gives a feeling that the Government is involved because he was critiquing where he serves.

When the CS speaks in the manner he did on Sunday, Anyoka said anyone would feel that the President and his team are liable for these abductions and there is a likelihood of a fallout, either he is on his way out or for whatever it is worth, it is for a good course for him to leave.

“To come out and critique your own government, the government that you serve, noting that the issues he touched on are of national interest, issues that touch on policy and security. And from the speech he made, he put the blame on the Kenya Kwanza Government, directly on his own boss, the President,” Anyoka told The Standard.

He added: “He could be disgruntled and is likely to move out of that government, either by resigning, or most likely will be reshuffled and be left out. 

Similarly, he said that the CS’s move could be pointing to some political undertones in the sense that he feels his government cannot survive the next election, so he could be realigning himself and has to find a good reason to either exit or resign.

“You see, whereas it could be possible of linking the statement to political ambitions, the facts are very clear, and coming from a sitting cabinet secretary, then it gives more credence that what Kenyans are raising is a lot of truth in it,” said Anyoka.

On the other hand, Advocate Ishmael Nyaribo said that Muturi is a senior government official, has been a Magistrate before, Attorney General and now a Minister of a sensitive docket overseeing human capital.

According to Anyoka, the CS is exercising huge intelligence and wisdom by not agreeing with the wrong things, a positive move, which means that he's one of the few ministers who want to bring sanity in the Kenya Kwanzaa government.

 “I entirely support his views. In working economies, that is a very interesting and good move for any minister in office. They must condemn what is wrong.   In working economies, when something is wrong, you come across the board and say, this is actually wrong. Maybe, we may disagree on methods of implementation but when it's wrong, it's called wrong,” he noted.

He opined that Muturi does not need to resign because he has taken a correct position, adding that Kenya Kwanzaa should not be in a hurry to show him the door, because he's helping the government from inside. 

Anyoka said that Mt Kenya East and West could speak from the same language, which poses a threat to Kenya Kwanza.

 “They should use it to style up and start leading people correctly, because they were elected, they are a government, why should they be interested in pursuing people through intimidation? They are in government, they have the majority, so they should just basically rule, govern correctly, and that is what Muturi said. That's a very important remark by a sitting minister. 

“If they attempt to show him the door, you can be assured they will be strengthening a lot of Kenyans who think that his statement was correct. If I were to advise the head of state, he should now focus on understanding correctly within Kenya Kwanza what is the problem, Muturi is not actually opposing President, that remark was very positive,” Anyoka maintained.