Officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigation's Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) clashed with prosecutors attached to the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) during a court hearing on former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko's case.
On Tuesday March 2, ATPU failed to present Sonko in court as had been ordered on Monday, March 1 when the Anti-Corruption Court ruled that the DCI unit had to present the embattled former governor in court.
Ezekiel Lulei, ATPU Deputy OCS told the court he couldn’t comply with the order since there is another existing directive from Kahawa Law Courts that hinders the unit from interrogating or getting Sonko from the hospital.
However, the DPP's team disagreed with their DCI colleagues saying that the order issued by Kahawa Law Courts became invalid on February 26, 2021.
“The orders being referred to by the ATPU existed until February 26, 2021, when the matter was mentioned. If the orders were extended then they should have been served before this court,” said the prosecution.
According to the prosecution, the court was not in a position to verify the reason why Sonko was still admitted in hospital.
Sonko's lawyers, John Khaminwa and Wilfred Nyamu, insisted that the accused was still unwell because he was suffering from several medical conditions.
“What we can confirm to you is that the governor is still unwell. The doctors have confirmed that he has hypertension, cardiological issues and he needs to undergo hip surgery in South Africa,” said Khaminwa.
Sonko’s lawyers further noted that a medical report was filed in court on Monday after their client was examined by a team of government doctors from Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH).
Khaminwa asked the court to grant his team six days for the former governor to recuperate and give them further instructions on how to proceed with the case.
The DPP has further urged the court to issue a fresh production order against Sonko through OCS, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and Nairobi Hospital to facilitate the attendance of Sonko in court.
The Court ordered Sonko to be presented before the Magistrate on Thursday, March 4.
Sonko remains admitted at the Nairobi Hospital after he fell ill at the Gigiri Police Station.
