The leadership of Azimio la Umoja has connected the abduction of former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga to what they perceive as a state-sponsored effort to hinder the opposition.
Njenga was reportedly taken on Saturday night in Banana, Kiambu County, by individuals believed to be security agents, according to his family and friends.
Kalonzo Musyoka and Martha Karua, addressing the press at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Foundation alongside Njenga's relatives, said the abduction is a subversion of the rule of law by the State.
Kalonzo said: "This is a country governed by the rule of law, but what we are witnessing is a complete reversal of the progress we have made."
According to Karua, Njenga's arrest is a government tactic to divert public attention from the current and unbearable economic hardships.
"It is an attempt to distract Kenyans from the economic mess that the Kenya Kwanza regime has placed them in," said Karua. She questioned why Njenga has become a consistent target of the police.
She further alleged that hooded police officers in a Subaru car seized Njenga at his residence. As of the time of reporting, Njenga's whereabouts remain unknown, and it is unclear who is responsible for his abduction.
Jeremiah Kioni, the embattled Jubilee Secretary-General, urged Azimio youths and victims of police brutality to submit memoranda to the bipartisan talks committee.
DAP-Kenya party leader Eugene Wamalwa accused the government of employing underhanded tactics to harass both the opposition and weary citizens.
"We have reached a point where the common citizen must stand up and say no to harassment," Wamalwa said.
Njenga and his aide Felix Lekishe were allegedly apprehended by Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives shortly after their arrival in Banana from Nanyuki, as claimed by their family.
While asserting that Njenga's abductors were police officers, his advocate, Ndegwa Njiru, said the family expects Njenga to appear in court today.
Njiru warned of legal action should the police fail to produce his client in court, stating, "He was able to identify his abductors. There is no doubt that his abductors are police officers."
Njenga's father Stephen Kamunya questioned his son's whereabouts, attributing the tribulations facing his son to his perceived political ambitions.
[Additional reporting by Okumu Modachi]
