Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara has appealed to President William Ruto to reinstate her security detail, claiming that her life was in danger.
Speaking during a press conference on Friday, May 23, Ms Kihara lamented the withdrawal of her security detail following the chaos witnessed at the launch of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s new political party, the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP).
“Mr President, please, please return my security detail,” Kihara pleaded with Ruto.
She added that the withdrawal had left her vulnerable and warned that all blame should rest with the President should anything happen to her.
“I feel so vulnerable right now. You know our work involves a lot of travelling, sometimes even at night,” Kihara stated.
Kihara castigated Ruto, accusing him of double speak regarding intimidation through the withdrawal of security, adding that it was her right to be accorded protection.
“We have sat together many times, where you said you would never use security forces for political reasons. This is exactly what you are doing,” she said.
“I need security because it is a right, and should anything happen to me, Dr Ruto, our President, you are to blame,” Kihara noted.
The MP asserted that efforts to stifle their support for Gachagua would not succeed, stating it was “all in vain and he would not go very far.”
A trend of withdrawing security details from dissidents within the government has recently been on the rise, with Gachagua himself a victim of this.
After his impeachment in October, Gachagua’s security detail was withdrawn. Even though part of it was subsequently reinstated, the former DP resorted to private security as he became the government’s most vocal critic.
Recently, the security of the former Attorney General and Public Service Cabinet Secretary, Justin Muturi, was withdrawn.
This resulted in Muturi alleging that his life was in danger as he championed their reinstatement.
