Chief of Defence Forces Julius Karangi risks arrest

By Willis Oketch

Mombasa, Kenya: High Court judge Edward Muriithi has warned Chief of Defence Forces Julius Karangi against disobeying court orders.

The judge further directed lawyers representing 26 former solders charged in Court Martial for deserting duty to file contempt proceedings against Gen Karangi, if the military does not set free the ex-soldiers as ordered by the court.

Justice Muriithi said the military chief was in contempt of court and if the ex-soldiers were not released by yesterday, the lawyers should file contempt proceedings against Karangi.

The judge expressed disappointment at the behavior of some KDF officers living in the past without realising that there is a new Constitution, which every arm of the Government must respect.

The judge made the remark as another commissioned officer, Jeffry Pepela Okuri’s lawyer, Ben Musundi, said he will today move to court to file habeas corpus to have his client produced in court dead or alive. Habeas corpus is an order seeking someone arrested to be produced in court.

Mr Musundi told The Standard that his client who resigned from the Kenya Navy, Mtongwe base more than five years ago was arrested by the military over claims he had deserted duty. “He is being confined illegally by the Armed Forces who are violating his right not to be subjected to slavery or any other form of injustice,” he said.

Muriithi gave the warning after the lawyer representing the ex-servicemen, Charles Mwalimu, complained to the court that his efforts to have his clients released from the military custody at Mtongwe as ordered by the court were being frustrated by the Kenya Navy officers.

He told the court that he was denied access to Mtongwe Base on Wednesday to serve Lft Colonel Evans Oguga with court release orders for the 15 ex-servicemen who had complied with court orders before.

“We were recently frog matched from Mtongwe Base by military officers when we went to see our clients after we had managed to enter the base because somebody gave the orders for us to be kicked out,” said Mr Mwalimu.

The ex-soldiers resigned from the Kenya Navy between 2007 and 2008 after securing greener pastures with US security firms in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan.