Ruto vs Omar: Who is telling the truth?

By Athman Amran

Eldoret North MP William Ruto was on the warpath Tuesday, singling out a commissioner at the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) for allegedly masterminding a scheme to link him to post-election violence.

He claimed Mr Hassan Omar Hassan had hired and paid witnesses to give false testimony against him to serve the interest of a group of politicians.

The suspended minister, who spoke at a Press conference at Parliament Buildings yesterday, was responding to a statement made by Omar on Monday night. Hassan had during an interview with KTN defended the process used to compile a report that was extensively relied upon by the Waki Commission and now the International Criminal Court as credible.

Hassan’s boss, Ms Florence Jaoko, had also jumped to the defence of the commission report, saying the contents were neither rumour nor lies.

But yesterday, Ruto took on Hassan’s rejoinder.

"Mr Hassan Omar talked about impunity. I want to inform him that there is no greater impunity than to recruit and bribe witnesses to subvert the course of justice in a process where so many lives of innocent Kenyans were lost".

Jaoko, on her part, said she had already defended the document and did not know what Ruto was talking about concerning Hassan being the mastermind behind the document.

Ruto jetted back from The Hague on Monday and wasted no time in criticising the KNCHR report that fingered politicians and businessmen as having taken part in one way or another in the 2007-08 violence that shook the country following the contested declaration of President Kibaki as the winner of the presidential election which pitted him against eventual loser Raila Odinga and his ODM brigade.

Yesterday, Ruto challenged the commission to also declare whether it was the source of the funds that were used to "bribe" witnesses.

The suspended Higher Education Minister appeared to be referring to witnesses who have claimed that they were paid to incriminate him over the post-election violence.

Already, two people who claim to have volunteered information to the human rights body have disowned the evidence.

It is believed that the ICC will heavily rely on evidence passed on to the Justice Philip Waki Commission of inquiry by KNCHR.

Good life

"He looked for them, paid them and promised them good life in big cities around the world but the truth will come out," said Ruto.

He claimed that the commissioner was working in cahoots with a group of politicians to "perpetuate a negative image" about him.

He said he was confident he would defend himself against the "falsehoods" anytime anywhere.

"Hassan should tell the country his participation in coaching political mercenaries allied to political parties," and challenged the rights body to state whether or not Hassan acted on its behalf.

The suspended minister alleged that the witnesses were assembled long before the ICC got involved in the Kenya case. The first report on the post-election violence was compiled by the rights body. The subsequent one by the Waki Commission also relied on the rights body’s report.

On Monday, Ruto also criticised the Waki Commission for "peddling lies" and averred that he never testified before the commission contrary to its assertion.

He accused some people of "hiding behind certain shades posing as though working for the best interests of the country yet involved in some schemes with some politicians to perpetuate an image against some of us".

He, however, said he knew what he was speaking about and it was up to Omar to explain why he gave the false report. "I would not make a statement from the blues. I know exactly what I am talking about," said Ruto.

Jaoko, the KNCHR chairman, had on Monday countered the claims insisting that there was no coaching of any witness. Jaoko had also stated that Ruto was given the chance to defend himself before the KNCHR report was compiled.

But during yesterday’s press conference, Ruto singled out only Omar for criticism.

The suspended minister travelled to The Hague on Wednesday last week for what he said was a mission to "set the record straight".

He jetted back on Monday morning to a heroic welcome by hundreds of supporters at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi.

Surprise visit

Ruto’s surprise visit to the ICC sent shockwaves around the country. Immediately he flew out, there was speculation that two other ministers who had also received letters from Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo were planning to travel to The Hague.

On Thursday when Ruto held his first meeting with the ICC team, President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga held an impromptu meeting and later another with the Cabinet sub-committee on the ICC matter.

Omar spent the whole afternoon in a meeting at KNCHR offices and promised that the Commission will issue a statement today.