Why Kinoti is reviving Kiambaa murder cases

The government has made a surprise U-turn and announced it’s reopening cases on the 2007-08 massacre, with victims of the horrendous Kiambaa Church ready to testify.

The move came more than seven years after the government officially announced that there was no evidence to prosecute perpetrators of the bloodbath that left more than 1,100 people dead and 650,000 forced from their homes.

It also comes exactly three weeks after lawyer Paul Gicheru surrendered to the ICC in what others claim is an attempt to revive the crimes against humanity charges against Deputy President William Ruto.

Yesterday, Director of Criminal Investigations George Kinoti said 72 murder cases, 44 land displacement cases and 118 of threats linked to the 2007-08 post-election violence had been lodged.

The DCI boss vowed to do whatever it takes within the law to bring the perpetrators of the post-election violence to book, saying that would happen “very soon”.

"Very soon you will see the outcome of this event. We will look for them. I know they are waiting for another poll violence to occur. Let them try again. We will follow the truth, prepare all the files and say this is the person who killed this person," he said.

However, some Ruto allies claimed the fresh PEV probes are a desperate move by the 'system' to bring down the DP after failing in all previous efforts.

“They want to incite violence against communities in Rift Valley, especially Eldoret, to weaken the DP’s political strength in Mt Kenya. They may even burn houses or kill people,” Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen said.

Governor Jackson Mandago told off KInoti, claiming that the move was political. He linked it to efforts to revive ICC cases against Ruto.

“We don’t want any artificial and manufactured problems like what Kinoti is now trying to do. From Kinoti’s statement, it's evident that he is operating from a very unusual position,” Mandago said.

Speaking at the DCI headquarters along Kiambu Road—where he met PEV victim, who said they have received fresh threats to their lives and are being profiled—Kinoti said the perpetrators will be charged locally upon conclusion of investigations.

“We know those who grabbed and are feeling comfortable wherever they are. There are those who killed, who pass over graves for people they killed," he said.

Former DPP Keriako Tobiko had set up a task-force in February 2012 to assess around 5,000 criminal cases stemming from the electoral violence.

The task-force included representatives of the DPP's office, the police, the then-Justice ministry, the Attorney General's office and the witness protection agency.

The team concluded that there was no evidence to prosecute the bulk of the cases. Since then, there have been claims of lack of political goodwill to prosecute.

The ICC equally blamed the government for lack of cooperation in the collapsed cases against Ruto and President Uhuru Kenyatta.

The Kiambaa church is perhaps the biggest highlight of the country's darkest moment when at least 30 innocent lives, mainly women and children, were set ablaze alive after fleeing from attackers.

But there was also horrendous police brutality, with more than 962 police shootings, 405 of them fatal, especially in opposition zones.

For the first time, some victims of the Kiambaa massacre narrated to the Star the horrifying events that claimed the lives of their kin.

Lucy Wanjiru, whose husband was a pastor in Kiambaa church during that period, said the election left them "homeless and hopeless".

"We were there and we saw how the fire was lit by some men. My husband could not escape on time... They even removed his eight teeth," she said.

Amid tears, Wanjiru, who declined to name her husband for security reasons, said he was left for dead. It was at this point that she rushed him to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, Eldoret, she said.

"After spending nine days in the hospital, he was released but he had marks all over his body. It is something that is still in my mind up to now,” she said.

Wanjiru said after that they had to look for another place to stay.

“Right now we moved out and he is currently preaching in another area that I cannot mention. My children are scared and they still have nightmares up to now," she said.

She noted that since then, they have not been helped by the government. She added that it is time for the government to stop promises and deliver.

“We do not want politicians to continue inciting people and yet it is us Kenyans who are dying,” she said.

However, she did not want to give details on how they got information to go and record statements.

But she was not alone. Njeri, not her real name, said her husband was killed when the church got burnt.

“My husband was killed. My son was badly injured and yet the government has not done anything," she said.

Njeri said she fears for her life and cannot fathom that some people who stay close to her were given compensation while she was neglected.

“I cannot even tell you the name of my husband. He was killed in front of me as I watched. There is nothing I could do," she said.

With teary eyes, Njeri said their security is not guaranteed, adding that the government only helped people who did not lose anyone.

Another victim — Charles Muraguri, who was also staying around the Kiambaa area — said he escaped from death.

“We have come to hear what they want to tell us. We have been following the case and nothing so far has taken place. The lawyer, who was fighting for us, said he could not risk his life for us anymore,” he said.

He said it became hard because they were being threatened to be witnesses.

"I was called to go and record statements because I was a witness but I never went. You will go there, be killed and they put you in sacks,” he said.

“All my things were burnt during that ordeal and there is no need of even mentioning names. If you name them, you will not help yourself. Instead, you are calling for your death,” Muraguri said, displaying the number he was given to be a witness to the burning of Kiambaa church.

But Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung'wa dismissed the push as political. "From the fight against corruption to now an attempt to drive ethnic animosity in the Rift to rescue the BBI? Come on! A little intelligence,” he said.

Nakuru Senator Susan Kihika shared similar sentiments, saying the DCI is being used by the 'system' to incite Kenyans to violence and then blame it on some people.

“I hope they don’t kill people and burn houses to justify Kinoti’s statements, Kenyans will resist the temptation to engage in violence and continue living in peace,” she said.

(Edited by F'Orieny)