We call on the Kenyan government to free Miguna and accord him his constitutional rights as a bona fide citizen of the country.
Of Odinga and Miguna and adage of lizard and rat
Kenyan government has not forgotten the role which lawyer Miguna Miguna played in the mock inauguration of the opposition leader, Raila Odinga as a parallel president with President Uhuru Kenyatta. But Kenyatta could easily forgive Odinga.
Last week, we watched President Kenyatta and Odinga in a political romance; that spirited handshake while Miguna was still in exile. Kenyatta could have forgiven Odinga so easily because for Kenyatta, Odinga’s case is understandable while Miguna’s case was a case of crying more than the bereaved.
Miguna fits into the character of the proverbial rat who danced in the rain with the lizard. Soon, the lizard’s body became dry while the rat’s body remained wet.
Immediately after Kenyatta was inaugurated on November 28th, 2017, Miguna, together with other bigwigs of the opposition coalition pressed Odinga to accept to be inaugurated too as a president. Kenyatta refused the earlier temptation. But his followers pressed on. After some pressure, Odinga accepted the ignoble outing. Miguna Miguna was everywhere on December 12th during the said inauguration and he publicly said a number of disparaging things which Odinga might have not said.
It was not surprising that the authorities arrested Miguna alongside other opposition elements while Odinga, the arrowhead of opposition was not even questioned. Kenyan government went farther with Miguna’s case and sent him on exile to Canada. The government even disobeyed the court orders to ensure that Miguna gets full punishment for his actions.
On Monday, Miguna attempted to return home but he could not go farther than the airport where officials blocked his entrance to the country. According to a statement released by Kenyan immigration services overnight, he failed to provide the “requisite documents” to be allowed entry. And so he was pushed back to an Emirate Flight enroute Dubai. But Miguna refused boarding, citing an international law that guarantees him the right to choose his flight and demanding: “I am not going anywhere….where is my luggage? Where is my passport? You cannot take me from my country by force.
The Kenyan government has accused opposition figure Miguna Miguna of throwing a “tantrum” after footage emerged of him being manhandled by security staff at Nairobi’s airport.
The plane, however, took off without him after the lawyer refused to board.
Miguna’s role in the ignoble inauguration notwithstanding, Kenyan government is constrained within the ambit of the law to obey the court order and allow Miguna to return to the country. It is absurd to say that a citizen of a country I deported to another country. The decision of government officials at the airport to stop Miguna from getting entry into Kenya is also questionable.
This newspaper warned Odinga to steer clear from fomenting troubles of parallel inauguration and accept defeat.
Also read:
Why Kenyatta May Win Kenya Again
Kenyatta wins election, murders peace
Kenyatta wins at Supreme Court but it is not yet Uhuru
Kenyatta Sworn-in for Second term, Raila Odinga Kicks
What Does Raila Odinga Plan for Dec, 12th?
We call on the Kenyan government to free Miguna and accord him his constitutional rights as a bona fide citizen of the country.