According to reports, police were about to search former interior CS Fred Matiang’i’s home in Karen, Nairobi, last night. However, the cause of the siege was not entirely clear.
Lawyers representing Dr. Matiang’i, led by Dunstan Omari, and ODM leader Raila Odinga said that police had arrived to the former minister’s home without providing an explanation.
“We think they had intentions to search the house, but they seem to have retreated when the lawyers and other people arrived,” he stated.
After hearing about the happenings at 10 p.m., Mr. Odinga hurried to Mr. Matiang’i’s house and criticized President William Ruto’s administration, saying that was not how to treat a “senior citizen” and former Interior Cabinet Secretary.
“Police have surrounded the home of Matiang’i. We are now witnessing the return of midnight arrests without charges. If Matiang’i has committed any crime, he should be informed about it before arrest and taken to court,” Mr.Odinga stated.
“Coming to arrest a senior citizen at this hour is wrong. This is completely unacceptable,” he added.
Mr. Sam Nyaberi, one of his lawyers, claimed that although they had been made aware of the police’s plans since 2pm, they were not informed of the reason for the raid.
The former CS maintained a low profile since the new administration assumed office in the wake of last year’s presidential elections.
He last appeared in public last week, when he went to the residence of former Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha to express his condolences to his family after his passing, together with former president Uhuru Kenyatta and members of his previous cabinet.
