A Muslim cleric who was acquitted on Thursday, May 6, has refused to leave prison.
Sheikh Guyo Garso filed a petition seeking to be allowed to remain behind Kamiti Maximum Prison walls.
After being acquitted, he refused to be handed over to his relatives who were in court, saying he feared he would be killed like other terror suspects who have disappeared without a trace upon being freed.
The Muslim cleric was arrested in 2018 over terrorism-related charges and has been held at the Kamiti Maximum Prison.
He alleged that should he be left to go home, he will be executed by state security agents.
Sheikh Guyo will stay in Kamiti prison for 30 days as he pursues the petition he filed in the High Court to compel the government to protect him.
After 30 days, he will be set free. He, however, has to pay the government for his stay at the facility.
“It is the High Court which is vested with the power to interpret the Constitution, then give orders it deems fit,” the court ruled while receiving his petition.
His case has reignited debate about enforced disappearances in Kenya.
Lawyer John Khaminwa pleaded for Sheikh Guyo to remain in Kamiti noting that the state has a duty to protect the rights of citizens under the Bill of Rights.
“Your honour, I pray you direct Sheikh Guyo Garso to remain in Kamiti, even after you have declared him a free man. He fears for his life,” veteran defence lawyer, John Khaminwa, pleaded.
“One of the fundamental rights of a citizen is the right to life. I undertake to pay for his subsistence while in Kamiti until further orders are made by the High Court over his right to live.”
