Missing Embu speaker's wife wants police summoned to court

By Lucianne Limo

Nairobi, Kenya: The wife of Embu County speaker Justus Kariuki Mate has rushed to court to seek orders compelling the police to produce him in court.

Caroline Gachema on Wednesday told the court that her husband disappeared in the hands of a police officer on Monday and wants him brought to court or released unconditionally.

Gachema further asked the court to summon the police to tell the court where and why Mate is being held in custody.

Justice Weldon Korir however declined to issue summons compelling the police to appear in court to explain Mate’s whereabouts.

“There is no sufficient evidence before me to issue summons to the police. The applicant should furnish the court with more information to enable me issue summons to police to appear in court,” Korir added.

The judge further noted that there was not sufficient evidence in court linking the police with the disappearance of the speaker.

Mate’s wife stated that on Monday, a police officer arrested or took into custody the Embu speaker and has to present date failed or refused to produce him in court.

The petitioner stated that she has not been able to access her husband from any police station or receive any communication on his whereabouts.

Gachema has sued the Director of Criminal Investigations Department, Director Criminal Investigation Officer, Starehe and Inspector General, Kenya Police Service.

“I now seek that the respondents be ordered to produce Mate to this court from their custody or release him unconditionally unless they have cause to suspect him to have committed a criminal offence," said Gachema.

She asked the court to treat her application with urgency as the whereabouts of her husband remains unknown from the
date he was arrested.

She told the court that she was apprehensive that the speaker maybe subjected to injury, mental anguish and inhuman conditions.

“Further by virtue of his position as the speaker, his continued holding has caused anxiety and speculation within the county of Embu generally,” Gachema said in her affidavit.

She said the court has powers to order the police to produce her husband in court or be released unconditionally.

Mystery still surrounds the Monday evening disappearance of Mate from a Nairobi hotel.

A section of Members of the Embu County Assembly now want the police to investigate how Mr Mate went missing from a city hotel where they were meeting.

Embu Deputy Speaker Ibrahim Swaleh Tuesday confirmed that Mate went missing on Monday and they are yet to trace him.

Mr Swaleh said before his disappearance, the Speaker had allegedly received a phone call at around 4:30pm from an officer attached to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Pangani and identified as Nicholas Kangangi, whom he was scheduled to meet later.

He said they became alarmed when Mate failed to report for dinner at around 8.30pm, prompting them to report the matter at Muthaiga Police Station.