Kenyan opposition politician charged with treason for Odinga swearing-in ceremony
- Following the symbolic “swearing in” ceremony of opposition leader Raila Odinga, a Kenyan politician, Miguna Miguna, has been charged with treason
- Miguna was arrested on Friday, and has remained in police custody even after being granted bail
- The Kenyan government has also refused to obey a court order and allow three TV stations resume transmission after they were shut down for airing the ceremony
A Kenyan opposition politician was charged on Tuesday, February 6, with treason and unlawful assembly for his involvement in the symbolic presidential “swearing in” of opposition leader Raila Odinga, NAN reports.
The charge sheet presented by police to the court in Kajiado south of Nairobi said Miguna was being charged with “being present and consenting to the administration of an oath to commit a capital offence, namely treason.”
READ ALSO: Quack doctor infects 40 people with HIV in India
Legit.ng gathers that Miguna was also charged with “taking part in an unlawful assembly” and “engaging in organised criminal activity”.
Miguna was arrested on Friday, February 2, in a dawn raid on his home.
He was granted bail of 50,000 Kenyan shillings (500 dollars) but has remained in police custody with his whereabouts unknown – something Kenya’s lawyers’ association said breached his rights.
A journalist at the court in Kajiado said Miguna had appeared at Tuesday’s hearing.
“Once again the state is willfully violating Miguna’s rights by moving him without any notice to his lawyers or his family and, in order to frustrate their access to him, to a court stationed outside Nairobi," Isaac Okero, president of the Law Society of Kenya, told reporters.
An Odinga ally, Miguna declared himself a leader of the opposition’s National Resistance Movement, which the government declared a criminal group.
The government took three private television channels off the air as they began to cover the opposition ceremony on Tuesday, January 30.
They remained off the air on Friday in spite of a court order the previous day which overturned the government-ordered shutdown.
Odinga says the 2017 elections, won by President Uhuru Kenyatta, were rigged.
PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigeria’s #1 news app
Recall that Legit.ng previously reported that Kenya's Supreme Court was set to announce its decision on a challenge to Uhuru Kenyatta's election as president.
The appeal was lodged by Raila Odinga, Kenyatta's main rival in the country’s presidential poll.
Official results said Kenyatta beat Odinga by 50.07% to 43.28%, avoiding a run-off by just 8,100 votes.
Who is Nigeria's greatest president? - on Legit.ng TV:
Source: Legit.ng
