Lawyers protest detention of Zamzam Abib

NAIROBI, KENYA: The police is on the spot for the detention of an expectant city lawyer at the Kilimani Police Station over what LSK now say reeks of impunity and blatant abuse of public office.

The police pounced on lawyer Zamzam Abib on Friday at the beginning of the long Easter weekend and have declined to release her even on police bond.

Her law firm, Abib and Associates reportedly recalled an RTGS payments of Sh6 million her firm had issued to one Salim Ali Sheik alias Bajaber on the instruction of her client.

The rescinding of the payments sparked a dispute and Sheik sued Zamzam in an ongoing civil case in the High Court.

The Law Society of Kenya President Allen Gichuhi said the police are being malicious and they are going to write a protest letter to new Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai.

Allen said LSK have pitched camp at Kilimani since Friday but their pleas have resulted into naught.

“We have tried since Friday to have the police release her on bail and they have refused. We can’t understand why. The offence that they are claiming to be investigating is stopping an RTGS instruction, surely!”Gichuhi protested.

He went on: “It’s a civil matter pending in court. It is very malicious. There is more than meets the eye. This is a young woman, she is a mother, she has ulcers, they are just keeping her there for no reason and we will insist on having a meeting with the IG himself. This is unacceptable. We are not just talking about her as a lawyer but the rights of every Kenyan citizen,”

Under the Constitution, Gichuhi said, unless you are a flight risk, all suspects are entitled to bail or a police bond.

He pledged that they are seeking a meeting today with the OCPD to understand why Zamzam has been denied a constitutional right

The matter has sparked protest from lawyers with many taking on Twitter to express their outrage

Lawyer Nelson Havi alleged that Zamzam is a victim of “extortionists with strong connections in the police service”

Former National Assembly Speaker Farah Maalim protested that arresting “a young mother on Good Friday and denying her bail because of a matter that is purely civil is the height impunity”

NASA Chief Executive Officer Norman Magaya alleged that the police in cahoots with the complainant has continuously sent emissaries to Zamzam to pay the Sh6 million or she would not be released.