By Samuel Ouma
The Kenyan government has come under heavy criticism for allegedly promoting a “police state” marked by an alarming increase in abductions, unlawful detentions, and extrajudicial killings.
Addressing the press in Nairobi, the former Vice President and the Wiper party boss Kalonzo Musyoka, on behalf of the opposition, voiced significant worry over these purported actions, accusing President William Ruto’s administration of suppressing dissent and violating human rights.
Musyoka referred to findings from an investigative report by the Nation Media Group, which exposed suspected collusion between police and telecommunications companies to unlawfully access private data.
The Wiper party leader said these surveillance activities violate citizens’ constitutional right to privacy as enshrined in Chapter Four of the Kenyan Constitution and protections provided by the Data Protection Act of 2019.
He pointed to Chapter Four of the Constitution, Article 31, which guarantees every citizen the right to privacy of their communications, homes, and personal information, stating that the government is flagrantly violating these rights.
The former Vice President castigated telecommunications providers such as Safaricom, Airtel, and Telkom Kenya, accusing them of participation in violating Kenyans’ privacy rights. He cautioned that these corporations might face legal consequences for allegedly supplying personal location data to government agents without consent, thus allowing unlawful arrests and harassment.
“We condemn all telecommunications companies, including Safaricom, Airtel, and Telkom Kenya, as well as any Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), for illegally providing location records and data to security agents,” said Musyoka.
Concerns raised by the opposition also extended to specific instances of enforced disappearances. Musyoka named activists Maverick Aoko and Boniface Mwangi, civic educationist John Njuguna Kuria, and JKUAT student Denzel Omondi as victims of recent kidnappings.
“Denzel Omondi, a JKUAT student who was among the demonstrators who stormed parliament on June 25th, was abducted two days later. Nine days later, his tortured body was discovered floating in a Juja quarry,” added Musyoka.
“John Njuguna Kuria, a civic educationist based in West Pokot, was reported missing for twelve days before his mangled body was discovered discarded.”
While Boniface Mwangi has been released after being unnecessarily arrested by the police, Maverick Aoko is still missing. Rumours have it that she was abducted at her Nairobi’s resident after posting worrying information about a senior government official.
The number of unclaimed dead at public morgues in Nairobi and Thika has alarmingly increased recently, according to sources. There are 201 bodies there that are purportedly awaiting disposal; many of them are thought to be the result of extrajudicial security force acts.
International organizations have also raised concerns about Kenya’s human rights record during Ruto’s administration. The Independent Medical-Legal Unit (IMLU) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) denounced the government’s actions as “gross human rights violations” and violations of international treaties, particularly the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The opposition has called for President Ruto’s resignation, claiming that his administration’s purported “return to a police state” directly affects democratic principles and freedoms in Kenya.
