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Legislators condemn Kisumu chaos
BY: Agencies DATE: Sunday, July 11, 2004
Two cabinet ministers and five legislators from Nyanza province say malignant outside forces were to blame for the Sabasaba chaos that rocked Kisumu town and absolved the LDP from the mayhem.
The leaders alleged that the fracas were instigated by people who wanted to portray the Luo community in bad faith as being anti-government and out to wreck the country.
The leaders led by roads minister Raila Odinga and his planning and National Development counterpart Anyang Nyong'o included assistant ministers Zaddock Syong'o (Trade) and Peter Odoyo (Labour).
Others were MPs Adhu Awiti (Karachuonyo), Eric Nyamunga (Nyando), Ayiecho Olweny (Muhoroni) and Ken Nyagudi (Kisumu Town West).
Raila called for a thorough investigation to establish those behind the riots saying someone had planned the demonstrations with an ulterior motive against the community.
He wondered how Kisumu could be rocked by Sabasaba violence while the history and passion of Sabasaba was in Nairobi.
"Kisumu has no passionate history with Sabasaba neither is it aligned with the movement. The chaos were planned by someone with a sinister motive," he said.
The leaders were speaking in Kisumu when they met the Nyanza security team led by the PC Aggrey Mudinyu.
The PC assured the leaders that police would conduct thorough investigations and those involved bought to book.
Mudinyu said it is not the intention of government to kill innocent people.
The leaders later visited victims of police shooting at the Kisumu district hospital and Nyanza Provincial general hospital.
Raila later addressed a crowd at Kondele where he called on them to be patient and allow the government to investigate the events of July 7
During the Sabasaba riots, two people died and at least 20 others were injured from gun wounds as police opened fire to disperse demonstrating rowdy youths agitating for a new constitutional dispensation.
Raila described as criminal the use of live ammunition on demonstrators and asked the police and the PC to ensure that the trigger-happy officers be punished for the heinous crime.
Deposed Kisumu mayor Shakeel Shabir claimed that a parastatal chief executive was behind the skirmishes.
Odoyo said no LDP leader in the area was aware of the impending riots saying LDP leaders were in office on the fateful day unaware of the origins and goings-on of July 7.
He refuted claims that police were not aware of the impending riots because they had been positioned in various hot spots by as early as 6.00am when there was no assembly.
Syong'o and Nyagudi alleged that junior officers were left alone without proper command saying this was the reason many of them meted intolerable violence on innocent people including children and women.
Nyagudi narrated to the security team how he narrowly escaped death when police shot at him as he tried to address and calm a crowd at Nyalenda accusing him of incitement
Syong'o compared the Sabasaba riots to the 1969 riots near Nyanza provincial hospital where scores of people were killed when demonstrators stoned the motorcade of the then president Mzee Jomo Kenyatta.
"We have gone through a period of healing since 1969 and do not want to go back. Someone is trying to rewind the clock of time and we will not allow it," he said.
Ayiecho insisted that there was someone in the police who ordered the use of live ammunition.
He alleged that the person behind the riots had planted hired goons in specific places to start the chaos
The MP said all police officers were armed with live ammunition alleging that this was an indicator that the police were out to kill and maim the people but not to quell the riots
Nyanza PPO Bakari Jambeni however said police had been given firm orders to use minimum force.
Nyamunga warned against police cover-up in the investigations saying such action would only inflame and not heal the wounds.
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