NAIROBI, Kenya- Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo has dismissed claims that the government is behind the recent disappearance of activists, insisting there have been no state-sponsored abductions since President William Ruto took office.
Speaking on Tuesday, Omollo said some of the reported cases involved people who had voluntarily gone into hiding rather than being abducted.
“The purported abduction cases are people sleeping, locking themselves in their houses,” he said.
The Interior PS maintained that the Kenya Kwanza administration had broken with the past.
“Those incidents happened during the previous governments. Since we took power under President Ruto, under his leadership there will be no such incidents,” Omollo said.
He added that some individuals had falsely claimed to have been abducted for personal reasons.
“Some of the people who have claimed to have been abducted have been hiding because of many reasons including looking for fame. There is no abduction under the watch of President Ruto. Anyone who is missing, it is important, is reported as a missing person,” he said.
Omollo’s remarks come despite growing concern from human rights organisations following the June 25 anniversary protests.
Seven activists who had reportedly been arrested during the demonstrations were later found with injuries after disappearing for several days.
One of them, Mathare Social Justice Centre activist Davis Lichuma, remains admitted to Kenyatta National Hospital after he was found alive but seriously injured and unable to speak, according to colleagues and leaders who have visited him. Rights groups allege the activists were tortured during their disappearance.
State-sponsored Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, Amnesty International Kenya and other rights organisations have called for independent investigations into the reported disappearances, torture allegations and the circumstances under which the activists were found.
They have urged the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) and other oversight agencies to establish responsibility and ensure accountability.
The National Police Service has previously denied involvement in enforced disappearances, maintaining that any allegations against security officers should be investigated through the appropriate legal channels.
“We are responsible government; we respect the rights of everyone and to express it in a manner the constitution allows,” PS Omollo said.