Media made my father die prematurely, says Mavoko MP Patrick Makau.
Makau said his father John King’ola collapsed and later died after watching 7.00 pm news on a local television on July 7th, 2016.
He said the television aired that the Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet had ordered his immediate arrest over torching of Syokimau AP Camp.
“The news shocked my dad who was then watching television at his Ngoleni village home in Machakos Sub County,” said Makau.
He said his father was not ailing before the incident.
Makau faulted the IG for going to press to announce his arrest instead of exploiting other state strategies to get him arrested.
He said police has got many ways of searching on their targets not necessarily by going to press or media.
The legislature who spoke during a prize giving day celebration at Kanaani High School in Athi River on Friday said his father could have been alive if the announcement was not made on the television.
“That is what caused my father to collapse and die where as there are better mechanisms and structures for searching legislatures. The shock killed my dad,” said Makau.
Makau said he evaded being nabbed by the police that fateful day because he had lost confidence in them.
“The warrant of arrests were issued that Thursday, I could not allow myself to be arrested and be detained in police cells until Monday since some of the arrested people have been killed while in police custody,” said Makau.
He said that explains why he disappeared when the IG issued the order only to reappear and voluntarily present himself to Director of Criminal Investigations for statements recording last Monday.
Makau said though he participated in the demonstrations organized by Law Society of Kenya, Machakos chapter against killings of Lawyer Willie Kimani, his client and a taxi driver in Mavoko, he neither instructed the demonstrators to torch the AP camp nor incited them to violence.
“I participated in the demonstrations as an elected leader. I cannot tell anybody to destroy or burn another person’s property, leave alone the state’s facility,” said Makau.
Makau said charges leveled against him over the incident were intended to divert public attention on the Mavoko three’s extrajudicial killings.
He said the camp was not torched by boda boda operators who participated in the demonstrations but a bunch of hired goons hired by certain people to destroy the evidence.
“There were more than 100 police officers armed in antiriot gears at the scene, why didn’t they secure the station or make arrests of those who burnt it,” said Makau.
“We are not here to do destructions and incite people, we are legislatures and have constitutional rights to participate in picketing and peaceful demonstrations. There is life after politics, you cannot cohere me through intimidation to ditch the opposition coalition,” said Makau.