Kiplagat to announce resignation

PAUL WAWERU | Nation Former MPs Koigi wa Wamwere, Otieno Mak’Onyango, Wanyiri Kihoro, Njeru Kathangu and an activist outside the High Court yesterday after the adjournment of a case in which they have sued the embattled chairman of the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission Bethuel Kiplagat.

By LUCAS BARASA lbarassa@ke.nationmedia.com AND BERNARD NAMUNANE bnamunane@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted Monday, November 1 2010 at 22:03

The besieged truth commission chairman, Mr Bethuel Kiplagat, is Tuesday expected to announce his resignation to avoid facing a tribunal formed to inquire into his conduct.

Sources said Mr Kiplagat met President Kibaki on Monday and handed in a resignation letter following pressure from commissioners and prospects of witnessing acts that have become history being revealed when the tribunal starts its work.

He first went to Harambee House in the morning, but was told to return in the afternoon to see the President.

He duly turned up for the afternoon appointment during which he was said to have explained to the President the mental anguish caused by the claims and that he would rather not face the tribunal.

President Kibaki, who has received such visitors in the last two weeks seeking to resign, was said to have accepted Mr Kiplagat’s decision.
It was understood that the embattled Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission chairman, who left Harambee House some minutes before 5pm, had promised the President that he was going to meet commissioners and call a press conference to announce his resignation.
There was anxiety among commissioners and employees of the commission at their Delta House offices as they waited for Mr Kiplagat to meet them and announce the next step. He was a no-show.
Even if Mr Kiplagat does not announce his resignation, the TJRC Act states that once the chairman has submitted his letter, he has effectively quit.
The decision to resign from the commission outright could be seen as a face-saving move that would stop the tribunal chaired by retired Appellate judge William Deverell from inquiring into his past, including allegations that he might have played a role in the Wagalla Massacre in 1984.
The resignation was to avoid embarrassing President Kibaki who appointed Mr Kiplagat after he passed Parliament’s scrutiny. The resignation was further meant to save taxpayers’ money being used to investigate an individual for six months.