Ministers Bett, Kamar deny murder plot claim

Two Cabinet ministers have asked the police to investigate allegations by a former adviser of Prime Minister Raila Odinga that they were plotting to kill him.

Mr Miguna Miguna sent a short text message to the Criminal Investigation Department and the media at the weekend claiming Prof Margaret Kamar (Higher Education) chaired a meeting in Eldoret last Saturday, plotting to kill him and that Mr Franklin Bett (Roads) and Kipkelion MP Magerer Langat dispatched representatives to the meeting.

On Tuesday, the two ministers had a meeting with Dr Mzalendo Kibunjia, the chairman of the National Integration Cohesion Commission over the matter.

They also recorded statements on the “shocking and outrageous allegations” at CID offices.

Mr Miguna’s SMS said partly that he had been credibly informed of an ODM strategy meeting which resolved that he should be murdered.

But Prof Kamar said she learnt of the allegations in the media and was shocked.

“I deny these claims and say this is a story that was fabricated for reasons unknown to us.”

She continued: “I have known Mr Miguna and never had personal conflict with him. Looking at how he has fabricated the story, I think he has intentions that should be investigated.”

Addressing a press conference at Parliament Buildings, the two ministers said Mr Miguna had picked on ministers from the Rift Valley who were also the Prime Minister’s allies indicating that “he had an agenda”.

“It is very wrong for anybody to fabricate such a story, we don’t know who he is serving. If he is working to tarnish the PM, it is evil,” Prof Kamar said.

Mr Bett said the claims were false and alarming. “Mr Magerer and I were in our constituencies, Prof Kamar was recuperating from jetlag after travelling from London the previous day. We had no such meeting,” he stated.

“We have never had such an agenda and we have no grudges with Mr Miguna because we have no working relations with him but here he is, claiming that we are plotting to kill him,” the Roads minister said.

Prof Kamar stated that the former adviser to the PM had wasted their day and must pay for it.

“I don’t think it is right for Cabinet ministers to run around to clear their names for things they have not done,” she said.

“It is very wrong for anybody to use our names to achieve whatever they want and we call on police to investigate this matter to its depth,” she said.

The two said they planned to pursue the matter in court.