THE political temperature continues to rise ahead of next week's trip to the Hague by the Ocampo Six. Three MPs have called for mass action if William Ruto and Uhuru Kenyatta are arrested, Uhuru has been installed as a Kikuyu elder to consolidate his position in the community, and Ruto has sought sympathy on television. Eldoret North MP William Ruto complained that the case has negatively affected his children.
In an interview with the Citizen TV’s Sunday Live show, Ruto said that the International Criminal Court case has badly affected his family and the performance of his children at school.“I have to travel with wife and one of my kids who has insisted that he wants to travel with me and I will. I will travel will my three or four lawyers as well. As a politician I can handle many things. The only part that is a bit tricky is my family." “Last week for example on Wednesday I had to go to my last-born’s school after the teachers asked me to go there. The teachers found that she was affected in some way and they asked that we avoid her watching TV. She hinted to the teachers that my father has issues with The Hague and they thought it was affecting her," he said “My son as well who is in another school in Nairobi came and asked if I was going to go away for six years. Of course it affects them. If there is a way we can insulate this from family members that would really help. But as a person I can handle this because my conscience is clear,” said Ruto
He reiterated that the ICC was not a credible judicial process and that some witnesses had been coached to frame him. Ruto maintained that he never planned nor financed the post election violence as claimed by the ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo. “We believe we are innocent and there is no point in creating a confrontation with the court. I have no trump card and I do not need one. If the court is a court of justice and if they are interested in the truth, the truth will come out."“We will tell them that William Ruto did not distribute any guns, did not handle grenades, did not participate in any violence and did not finance, plan or aide anyone to fight,” said Ruto.
Ruto is among the six suspects summoned to appear before the ICC judges for their role in the post election violence. The others are deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, Civil Service boss Francis Muthaura , former Police Commissioner Hussein Ali and radio presenter Joshua arap Sang.
Ruto also claimed that he was having problems securing a visa to the Netherlands but the Dutch embassy said yesterday that no MP had yet applied for a visa and asked all MPs wishing to travel next week to apply urgently.
Meanwhile assistant Water minister Ferdinand Waititu, Makadara MP Mike 'Sonko' Mbuvi and Juja MP William Kabogo have asked the youth to prepare themselves for mass action if the Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and suspended Higher education Minister William Ruto are arrested after going to the International Criminal Court. The trio who promised to lead the demonstrations with youth from across the country.
Speaking at Murang’a town the trio also condemned the recent extrajudicial police killings in the pretext of fighting Mungiki saying that it was unfair to kill innocent people.
Sonko declared that said Prime Minister Raila Odinga should expect nothing less than what is happening in Libya and Egypt if Uhuru and Ruto did not come back from Hague before the 2012 general elections.
Sonko said that he was not afraid of going to jail for hate speech. He said Raila was greedy for power and was pushing hard Ruto and Uhuru to be locked up at The Hague to eliminate them from the presidential race.
Sonko complained proposed that Raila wanted a foreigner for Chief Justice ignoring youths in Kenya who are qualified for the task. He said that youth have already resolved to elect Uhuru Kenyatta as president in 2012.Waititu said that he would mobilize youth from Embakasi to block the flight that will be taking the Ocampo Six to the Hague if Raila and Medical Services minister Anyang' Nyong'o were not the list to go on trial.
Kabogo asked the government to stop treating the youth as thieves. He said that the government must look into the problem of unemployment. Ruto was speaking speaking on the day Uhuru Kenyatta was officially installed as a Kikuyu elder in Murang’a in the presence of Environment Minister John Michuki.
According to Kikuyu traditions, two sets of Kikuyu elders scrutinize the person’s past life and declare that he has not been involved in murder or any crime against the community. The candidate is handed a long stick traditionally recognized as muthigi and which signified power to lead.
Uhuru was handed the stick along with a fly whisk, a carved stool, a traditional headgear, and a wild animal hide. The Murang’a ceremony skipped the circumciser's knife which signifies power to circumcise.
In 2008, Peter Kuguru's plans to install Prime Minister Raila Odinga as a Kikuyu elder were dropped after some leaders from Central objected.
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