Garissa senator warns of national division over selective justice in wake of Ojwang’s death
Haji said while it was important to demand justice for Ojwang, similar urgency should be shown for other Kenyans who have died under unclear circumstances.
Garissa Senator Abdul Haji has raised concerns over the Senate’s inconsistent response to cases of police brutality and killings, warning that focusing on select incidents while ignoring others could deepen divisions within the country.
Speaking during the special sitting on the death of Albert Ojwang, Haji said while it was important to demand justice for Ojwang, similar urgency should be shown for other Kenyans who have died under unclear circumstances.
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He said many lives have been lost without any action from the Senate, civil society, or the media.
“In no way am I trying to disrespect this very sitting today, but I would love to see some level of fairness in this country. I would like to see that the case of any Kenyan from anywhere is important,” the Senator said on Wednesday.
Killing of 40 fishermen
Haji pointed to a recent case where the Turkana senator raised concerns about the killing of 40 fishermen in the Senate, but it did not lead to a special sitting or public outcry.
“Last week, the Senator of Turkana stood on the floor of this House with a statement enquiring about the death of 40 fishermen who were killed and left in the lake, and not a single senator requested a special sitting,” he said.
“Not even this country demanded answers about the death of those individuals… It begs the question: are there some Kenyans who are more important than others?”
Unresolved killings
The Senator also highlighted unresolved killings in his county.
“I would like to beg this House: I have a case of six youths in Garissa who were brutally murdered on the road, and to this day, we do not know who killed them,” Haji said.
“We have not heard from the human rights organisations, not the media houses, not even the civil societies, none have pursued justice for them. If this continues, some senators will feel disconnected from the rest of the country.”
Haji said this kind of imbalance creates the impression that some regions are less important and called for equal treatment in seeking justice for all Kenyans.
Turning to Ojwang’s death, Haji demanded answers about the final moments of the young man’s life.
He questioned whether Ojwang was alive when police took him from Central Police Station to Mbagathi Hospital. He also questioned the movement of suspects between police stations.
“I would also like to ask IPOA: how many of our police stations have CCTV cameras, and how many of those are installed within the cells? Were the CCTV cameras working even before IPOA concluded they had been interfered with?” he asked.
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