NAIROBI, Kenya – Hours before Margaret Nduta Macharia’s scheduled execution in Vietnam, pressure is mounting on President William Ruto’s government to step in.
With time running out, officials have finally broken their silence, acknowledging the case’s complexity but assuring the nation that efforts are underway to secure a reprieve.
Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei addressed the issue, stating, “Nduta’s case is complex and difficult, but we are doing everything within our disposal to secure a reprieve for our nation.”
His response follows an urgent plea from Senator Richard Onyonka, who has called on President Ruto to personally intervene.
Margaret Nduta’s case is complex and difficult – Foreign Affairs PS Korir Sing’Oei
A Race Against Time: Vietnam’s Execution Protocol
Vietnam enforces some of the world’s strictest drug laws, and executions for drug-related offenses are common.
Since 2011, the country has used lethal injection, a three-drug cocktail that induces unconsciousness, halts muscle movement, and stops the heart.
Nduta, a 37-year-old Kenyan, was convicted on March 6, 2025, by a Vietnamese court for smuggling two kilos of cocaine valued at approximately Sh27 million.
While authorities insist on her guilt, her family believes she was framed or unknowingly lured into the crime.
Diplomatic Pressure and Calls for Reprieve
Senator Onyonka has outlined three urgent steps for the Kenyan government:
- Appeal for a Sentence Reduction – He is urging President Ruto to negotiate for Nduta’s sentence to be commuted to life imprisonment.
- Push for Repatriation – He has called for diplomatic negotiations to allow her to serve her sentence in Kenya.
- Seek International Intervention – The senator wants Kenya to involve the United Nations and human rights organizations in advocating for Nduta’s life.
Wrote to President @Wiiliam_S_Ruto to intervene and #FreeNduta from the jaws of death in Vietnam.Margaret Nduta Macharia is a KENYAN, and it would be correct if she was repatriated back to the country to be tried within our laws over the crimes that she is being accused of.…
Despite these efforts, Nduta’s family remains in anguish.
Her mother, Purity Wangui, expressed heartbreak, saying, “I must see her before they hang her. I just need to look her in the eyes and hear her voice one last time.”
As diplomatic negotiations continue behind closed doors, Nduta’s fate hangs in the balance.
Whether Kenya’s intervention will be enough to halt the execution remains uncertain, but for now, the world watches—and waits.