Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga Wednesday called for the immediate halting of the ongoing mysterious abductions in the country.
He indicated some government elements are behind the trend the latest being a popular cartoonist Gideon Kibet alias Kibet Bull.
Odinga said the rampant abductions that have been witnessed in 2024 should be expeditiously addressed by the government lest they pose a huge threat to national security.
“We are now crossing the end as a country. This year has been challenging for the people of Kenya. We had demonstrations and innocent lives being lost. But we also want to see the end of something we have witnessed this year we line at the end, the abductions of innocent people,” Odinga noted.
“This is punitive and it’s something that is very strange. We cannot live in a country where people disappear for no other reason and are kept incommunicado for a long time. The government must take this thing seriously and it must come to an end. We want a safe and secure country.”
Odinga said the tactics to use abductions as a way of administering foul justice have become of age and any Kenyan found to be contravening the law should be dealt with lawfully.
“Gone are those days where they used to arrest you and take you to Nyayo House. But these days you are being taken to unknown places. It is primitive and unacceptable,” he said.
Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka and former defense Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa too condemned the trend and asked for immediate release of all being detained.
Mombasa Catholic Archbishop Martin Kivuva had also expressed similar concerns, saying the abductions threaten peace in the upcoming 2027 General Election, noting that the law should take full effect in apprehending wrongdoers.
“The abductions being made because of expressing yourself have become of age. That is what we witnessed during the colonial era where one would be tortured for just having an ill-thought,” Kivuva noted in his Christmas sermon.
“We urge the President if he knows those involved or anyone listening to me. It is bringing us back many years before independence and this will not help in building confidence in our young generation.”
Anglican Church of Kenya Archbishop Ole Sapit demanded that those behind the abductions should be civil and stop their wanton behaviour.
He said that the church is standing behind the families that have recently lost their loved ones from abductions, calling for an immediate probe to trace their whereabouts.
“Let this Christmas be a moment of celebration and we want to stand with those families that are crying and we saw last night families are crying that their loved ones have been abducted, they don’t know their whereabouts and we are praying with them,” said Ole Sapit.
“It is our plea to whoever is behind this to stop and let us act responsibly and demonstrate that we care about this nation and her future.”
Three people have been reported to be abducted in the past week.
They include 24-year-old Benard Kavuli who was kidnapped at a petrol station in Ngong town on Sunday evening by four armed men aboard a white Probox.
His abduction is linked to his activities on social media pages with the latest posts on his X platform criticizing the government while highlighting issues related to the 2007 post-election violence witnessed in the country.
Kavuli’s abduction comes a day after Peter Muteti and Billy Mwangi were also kidnapped in a similar fashion by four armed men in Uthiru and Embu respectively.
The two have been missing since they were taken by armed men on Saturday.
A CCTV footage captured two men abducting Muteti while he was paying for items at a supermarket in Uthiru.
More than 70 people are missing after being abducted separately since the June 25 anti tax protests. Police are largely blamed for the trend.
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