Former Chief Justice David Maraga has demanded the arrest of the Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja, his deputy, Eliud Lagat, and the Director of Criminal Investigations, Mohammed Amin, over the death of Albert Ojwang.
Speaking to journalists on Monday, June 16, the former CJ demanded that the arrests be made before June 25, failure to which he would join Kenyans in engaging in private prosecution against the three.
According to the former CJ, they all lied under oath about the kidnapping and the eventual murder of the blogger and urged that this step be taken promptly.
Maraga says they gave false sworn statements regarding the brutal killing of Ojwang, arguing that their accounts directly contradict several statements issued by the police service.
One of the red flags that Maraga raised was that there was prima facie evidence that DIG Lagat, directly or indirectly, is implicated in the illegal arrest, torture, strangulation and eventual murder of the blogger, yet he remains in office.
Stating that Kenyans could no longer trust the three institutions, NPS, IPOA and DCI, he demanded that the justice system be reset and rebuilt, starting with the ouster of the three top officials.
"To begin this resetting and rebuilding process, we demand the arrest of the DCI because he lied on oath, and the IG, as well as Mr Lagat himself and they be prosecuted along with those associated with the murder of Ojwang," he stated.
He asserted that he was supporting all other Kenyans who had petitioned for the prosecution of the three, but if no action would have been taken by June 25, he would join Kenyans in nationwide protests.
"We demand that this be done, on or before June 25. If that is not done, we will formally come out and join those efforts and demand private prosecution."
He went on to explain that even if the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) failed to lay the charges against them, Kenyans had the autonomy to demand private prosecution.
"Articles 1 and 3 of the constitution guarantee Kenyans their sovereignty, and thus they can act directly or through institutions set up. My team and I support those constitutional actions of Kenyans who are exercising the freedom of assembly to express their demand for accountability," he declared.
In recent months, activists and the opposition have been hinting at an upcoming mega protest on June 25 to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the deadly Gen-Z protests of 2024, a plan that has recently been intensified by the death of Ojwang in police custody.
During the 2024 protests, dozens of Kenyan youth were gunned down, and many others were abducted as they protested against the Finance Bill, 2024.
