We are innocent, say three on list of suspects

Three people who are among 200 accused of being the architects of post-election violence on Thursday said they were innocent.

Tourism minister Najib Balala, former Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara and Eldoret businessman Jackson Kibor said they were wrongly implicated in the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) report.

Mrs Kihara said she welcomed the move to hand over names of the key suspects to the Pre-Trial Chamber at The Hague, saying she had nothing to fear as she was not among the perpetrators.

Speaking to the Nation by telephone, the former MP said: “I hope the International Criminal Court will carry out thorough investigations and bring the real perpetrators of post-election violence to book.”

In an interview with the Nation last year, Mrs Kihara said she was being used as “a sacrificial lamb” and blamed powerful political forces for her ordeal. And Mr Balala dismissed the report linking him to the violence, saying that it was based on “hearsay”.

“My conscience is very clear and I have a reputation in Mombasa of never giving handouts. In any case, the demonstrations which took place in Mombasa were very peaceful so I don’t know which violence they are talking about. They did not even bother to raise the allegations with me,” he said.

The report listed Mr Balala among seven ministers. Mr Kibor said he was ready to appear before the ICC. Speaking by telephone, the former Uasin Gishu Kanu chairman said investigators were free to carry on with their work since they wanted to establish the cause of the violence. “I do not know if my name is in the envelope, but will wait and see if they summon me,” he added.

Macharia Mwangi, Kennedy Lumwamu and Peter Leftie