Late MP Marie John Seroney’s Family Awarded Sh17 Million For His Unlawful Detention, Torture In 1975

The family of Late MP Marie John Seroney has been awarded Sh17 million for his unlawful detention and torture by the state in 1975.

The former MP was a human rights activist who defended the rights of citizens and was very vocal on corruption during Late President Daniel Arap Moi’s tenure.

He was detained for 1,155 days without trial following fall out with late Moi and lost his parliamentary seat in the process. He later died on December 6, 1982.

Following his death, his family sought compensation for the violence meted on them and the losses incurred by the Moi regime.

Read Also: Lest We Forget: The Good and Bad of President Moi’s Rule

For instance, in February 2012, Seroney’s widow, Ziporah Serony indicated that it had been 21 years since they were kicked out of their Tinderet home and they have not been able to view his grave since.

“In 1991, I received a warning that someone wanted my head. At that point, I was forced to flee from my home with my children,” Widow Seroney told journalists in a presser.

In 2011, the then Naivasha MP John Mututho tabled a petition in the National Assembly calling upon the Government to offer an apology for the detention and torture of Seroney and other victims.

Read Also: Documents Lay Bare Torture, Gruesome Murders Moi’s Political Detainees Underwent

In addition, Mututho wanted the State to compensate them for their loss and suffering that they were subjected to, arguing that they did not commit any crime other than exercising their freedom of speech in parliament.

Mututho asked the then speaker Kenneth Marende to take charge of the matter and derive a solution.

Apart from losing their home, the family also lost their farm which was sold to the bank in a bid to recover the loan that the Late MP had acquired.

Ideally, the widow had been left with 7 children and 6 other stepchildren to fend for on her own.