By CYRUS OMBATI
Police have been directed to arrest and charge Gem MP Jakoyo Midiwo with giving false information over claims of a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Raila Odinga. This even as the MP named several other people he says can give evidence to support his sensational allegation.
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Keriako Tobiko says he has looked at the evidence police gathered on the matter and agreed with them that Midiwo was lying and had committed a crime.
"I concur with the police recommendations on the probe and have directed that the MP be arraigned for giving false information on the issue," he told The Standard On Saturday.
Midiwo is in South Africa and may be taken to court next week police said Friday. Contacted by phone, the Gem MP said he is ready to go to court, insisting that what he told the police is the truth.
Midiwo said other witnesses had corroborated what he said and challenged police to make public the statements they recorded from all those he mentioned. He argued that the police had recommended charging him because he had mentioned powerful individuals in high offices.
Untouchable
"To (the police) it is a lie when some people, who are untouchable, are mentioned," he said. "I knew that would be their conclusion. I challenge them to make public all the statements submitted by the people I mentioned."
The MP did not speculate on why the DPP, whose office enjoys independence under the Constitution, would agree with the police. He said the police’s work is to confirm if information given to them is true or false. In this case, however, he insists the police are taking instructions from politicians.
The MP claimed that Kisumu Town MP Olago-Aluoch is among the witnesses who are privy to the plot, but insisted police had not talked to him. He also mentioned a Mr Ochiel and the late Mary Onyango, as other witnesses aware of the plot, and those involved.
private office of a powerful individual. I am ready to go to court and I will inform them (as much) when I arrive at the airport," he added.
On Friday, Tobiko commended police for covering their investigations well as he returned the file back to the CID for action. Tobiko received the file on the investigations on Thursday morning. He now says prosecutors believe they can prove Midiwo’s story is made up.
Police interviewed a number of individuals Midiwo named as having met to plan the alleged assassination. The detectives, led by CID director Ndegwa Muhoro, spoke to Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, Finance Minister Njeru Githae, and his Foreign Affairs counterpart Sam Ongeri. Trade Permanent Secretary Karanja Kibicho, President Kibaki’s Personal Assistant Nick Wanjohi, and a senior security official also recorded statements on Monday. Also questioned was Eldoret North MP William Ruto.
Midiwo made the claim of a plan to kill the Prime Minister at a funeral in Bondo on April 7. He later recorded a statement at the CID headquarters, Nairobi, on the basis of which detectives questioned those mentioned.
Tobiko had directed the police to speed up the investigation leading to the questioning of Midiwo and other persons he mentioned as being privy to the alleged conspiracy. At the funeral, Midiwo mentioned Prof Ongeri and his ministry as he asked for an investigation into the role of foreign mercenaries in the plot.
It was not clear why he chose to mention the Foreign Ministry rather than the Immigration Ministry, which controls who comes in through various ports of entry. Midiwo first spoke in the presence of the PM and Cabinet ministers Nyong’o (Medical Services), Dalmas Otieno (Public Service), and James Orengo (Lands) during the burial of Dr Leah Gondi in Bondo District.
"I am willing to testify under oath because if I don’t say it now, nobody would," said the MP. Midiwo alleged that a meeting was held, which brought together two ministers, a senior security officer, and a permanent secretary during, which elimination of the PM was discussed as the last option in swinging the Kibaki succession race. He said the President was not in the picture about the plot. It is on the basis of the allegations that Tobiko ordered police to probe the matter.
Ongeri has denied the claims by Midiwo and demanded an apology from the MP. The minister wrote a demand letter to Midiwo saying the MP’s claims that he attended a meeting at Serena Hotel, Nairobi with a Minister from central Kenya to plan the assassination of the PM had depicted him as an assassin.
