Mr. Githuku wa Muirani, a Kenyan resident in Stockholm, has said that he is not a witness in the Alby fracas case which was reported to police after a Kenyan claimed that he had been assaulted. Mr. Muirani told KSB that there are several rumors circulating among Kenyans in Stockholm city that he is one of the key witnesses in the case.
“As far as I am concerned, I am not a witness in the case and those spreading rumors that I am involved are doing so out of their own motives”, Mr. Muirani told KSB.
Mr. Muirani is one of the Kenyans who was present at the Alby pub where a Kenyan was allegedly beaten. He said that he does not know if the matter is a police case and that he learnt about the police angle at KSB.
“Kenyans in Stockholm should stop cheap rumors and personal vendetta against one another. My name should not be dragged in the story because I don’t want to get involved”, he said.
The Kenyan said that his political enemies are taking advantage of the story to spread lies around his good name.
“Whoever is spreading these rumors has ulterior motives. I know that my political enemies are using the story to gain mileage but this will not work”, he said.
Two Kenyans, namely Jane Karanja and John Muchiri, have since come up and said that the story which was published at KSB about the incident may have been exaggerated to give the impression that there was a big fight at the pub.
While taking a position on what allegedly transpired at the pub, Mr. Muirani said that he agrees with the version which was given by Jane Karanja to the effect that on the material day, the Kenyan at the center of the story was simply “slapped on the back” and not beaten with “rungu-like” blows.
Mr. Muirani also said that the discussion that was on the table at that time did not focus on Mungiki but on Kikuyu culture.
MUNGIKI KILLINGS
Turning to the situation in Kenya, Mr. Muirani condemned the recent killings of innocent civilians by people claiming to be Mungiki. He joined those calling for dialogue with Mungiki to solve the problem.
“The government should open dialogue with known Mungiki leaders to get to the root cause of the problem”, he said.
“Both the government and the opposition have a hand in Mungiki”, he said, adding that both sides are trying to settle scores using the sect.
“Mungiki might also have been infiltrated by criminals who are killing people” Mr. Muirani said.
Mr. Muirani said that the youth in Kenya are idle and that under such circumstances, it was easy for them to be recruited by Mungiki.
The Kenyan said that the government should either charge Mungiki leader Mr. Maina Njenga or release him. He also called for the withdrawal of GSU personnel from Mr. Maina’s residence at Kitengela arguing that since Maina’s home was secured by police, investigations should have been completed by now.
“The problem is that supporters of Mr. Njenga and other sympathizers might be resorting to killing people because their leader has been locked in for too long”, Mr. Muirani told KSB. He said that Mungiki was set up as a cultural watch-dog and explained that those killing people might be extremists within the Movement and criminals with a different agenda.
Mr. Muirani condemned the current harassment of MP Mwandawiro Mghanga and other politicians who have been arrested by security forces and locked in police cells for days on claims that they are linked to Mungiki.
“The government knows those behind the killings”, he told KSB.
Okoth Osewe
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