Nairobi — Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has called on the Judiciary to impose stringent sanctions on former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju and politicians accused of staging their own abductions, warning that such actions risk destabilising the country.
Murkomen said the alleged trend of "self-abductions" paints the government in a negative light and could encourage a dangerous culture if not firmly addressed.
"If we bring people who are abducting themselves before the court of law, you must take the severest action against them. If you don't, you are going to create a very bad culture in this country where people abduct themselves to attract sympathy," he stated.
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The Interior CS claimed that investigators had established Tuju was at his residence during the period his family reported him missing. According to Murkomen, government intelligence indicated that Tuju was "sleeping" at home.
Murkomen, who said he was travelling from London when he received news of Tuju's disappearance, noted that preliminary findings already pointed to the former CS being inside his house.
He further alleged that Tuju had switched off his phone, with investigators tracing his last known location to a bedroom within his residence. Police were subsequently instructed to verify whether he was indeed inside the house.
The CS also claimed that although Tuju's family reported him missing, they initially denied police officers access to the Karen residence.
Murkomen said that after the Inspector General directed officers to gain access to the home, Tuju allegedly contacted the media and re-emerged, claiming he had been in hiding.
"These theatrics must come to a stop," Murkomen said, urging the Judiciary to act firmly against what he described as a growing culture of staged abductions.
His remarks came hours after Director of Criminal Investigations Amin Mohamed said forensic analysis contradicted Tuju's claims, indicating that he remained inside his home throughout the period he was reported missing.
