DP Gachagua Comes to IG Koome's Aid after Azimio's Letter to ICC

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has urged Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome to continue discharging his duties unperturbed.

This follows a letter addressed to the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC).

The coalition stewarded by Raila Odinga accuses Koome of putting up a plain-clothes police unit charged with meting out brute force on demonstrators.

"Japheth Koome established a special squad of police officers known to be rogue and some being accused persons in criminal courts in Kenya facing charges of killing with the purpose of unleashing terror on supporters of Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition party when they were exercising their constitutional right to assemble, demonstrate and picket,” Azimio said in the letter.

Coming to the defense of the IG, the deputy president said Koome acted in line with his job description; to protect life and property.

Gachagua called on the police boss to continue performing his duties without any fear.

"They are trying to intimidate Police IG Japheth Koome. I want to ask him to continue doing his work professionally. All he did was to protect life and property. Had they not come to the streets, there would be no issue between the police and the demonstrators," Gachagua stated.

The deputy president spoke in Nyandarua where he presided over tree-planting in the areas adjoining Lake Ol Bolossat.

The opposition also accused IG Koome of acting as a conspirator during attacks on the Kenyatta family’s Northlands farm and the East Africa Spectre Limited, which is owned by Raila. 

“At the time of the attacks, Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga were the Chairman and Party Leader respectively of the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition party and were openly blamed by the political leadership of Kenya Kwanza including by the President and Deputy President of financing and mobilizing the demonstrations of members of the Azimio coalition,” the letter added. 

The Raila-led coalition also claimed that nine people lost their lives in the demos while 35 people sustained injuries.

The letter further accused the Kenya Kwanza government of delegalizing members of the opposition as citizens of Kenya by referring that the country was a company limited by shares and only members of their coalition were shareholders.

Azimio requested ICC prosecutor Karim Khan to submit the information to the Pre-Trial Chamber for authorization for an investigation.