MPs angry over Press summons

• Backbench rises to condemn querying of two reporters by security operatives

A group of Kenya's backbench MPs on Thursday continued with their push for an official opposition to check the excesses of the Executive.

The move, they said, was meant to protect journalists from harassment in case they reported the abuse of office or corruption within the Coalition government.

The agitation followed a statement by Ikolomani MP Boni Khalwale (New Ford Kenya) on police summons against two journalists attached to The Star newspaper.

The journalists — Andrew Teyie and Maina Kamore — were summoned by the anti-terrorism police to “explain the source” of a story they wrote for the newspaper in which they claimed the police had lost crucial documents relating to Al-Qaeda fugitive, Fazul Abdallah.

The MPs said the summons were against the Media Act, which exempts journalists from an obligation to reveal sources of their stories.

Garsen MP Danson Mungatana (Narc Kenya) and his Mutitu counterpart Kiema Kilonzo (ODM-K) accused the government of intimidating the reporters to prevent them from exposing a cartel within the force suspected to be behind the scandal.

However, Internal Security assistant minister Orwa Ojode refuted the claims, saying the police had a right to question anyone they think can aid their investigations.

Police Act

He used the Judge’s Rules used in all Commonwealth countries to back his claim, adding that even the Police Act allows the force to issue summons.

The Act gives the police powers to summon “any person (the force) has reason to believe has information that may assist in investigating an alleged offence.

Mr Ojode said the reports were alarming and added that journalists ought to share sensitive information with the police before publishing it.

This, he said, would end the suspicion between the media and security agencies while giving room for “an effective investigation into various sensitive matters that come to their notice”.

However, Dr Khalwale, Mr Kiema and Mr Mungatana disagreed with the explanation, saying Press freedom in the country was now under threat, and that the media have no obligation to collude with the State.