Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has moved to court seeking anticipatory bail.
It is his argument that he is under imminent threat of arrest by the police and is justifiably apprehensive that his constitutional rights are being violated.
“The powers of arrest by the respondents and the Kenya Police are being abused and misused to harass, intimidate and oppress the applicant and his former cabinet colleagues and the former president; and to achieve extraneous political purposes unconnected with upholding the Law,” he argues.
Matiang’i argues that unless the orders are granted, he together with his family members and people close to him will continue living in a saddening state of fear and anxiety as they are not aware of when and how the respondents would pounce on them.
The former interior CS claims that he received credible information from officers of the Kenya Police that they are under express instructions to arbitrarily capture and arrest him with a view of arraigning him in court for ulterior political motives.
Through his lawyers, Matiang’i now wants the court to issue conservatory order restraining the respondents, their servants, agents, junior officers and/ or anybody from effecting and/or anybody from arresting, charging, harassing or otherwise however interfering with him.
Similarly, he wants the court to stop the police and government from harassing him without conducting investigations and according to him an opportunity to be heard or summoned to appear at any office to record statement(s) if need be.
He claims that on February 9, 2023, his home was raided, surrounded and cordoned off by police officers who were seeking to arrest him.
According to Matiang’i the police officers only retreated after the media and his lawyers arrived.
“Worth noting is the fact that the applicant has never been summoned to appear before any police station or investigative agency and no arrest warrants had been issued against him, a clear breach of due process, “reads court papers.
According to the former CS, the timing of the arrest is designed to ensure that he does not attend the funeral and burial service of his late cabinet colleague, Prof. George Magoha.
“The Applicant is aware that his woes got worse when he gave a speech at the home of the late Prof Magoha where he shared the lessons on public service that he had learnt from the deceased. His security was withdrawn the next day and the impending arrest is part of the scheme to harass and silence me forever.”
