Sarolyne Wanjiku Mwendia, a former Laikipia West MP aspirant, and the Jubilee Party Chairperson Laikipia County Chapter, was on Friday, October 4 taken into custody at the Nanyuki Police Headquarters on charges of inciting violence during the ongoing public participation demonstrations.
According to reports, she was being trailed by three police cars with unidentified civilians before being apprehended by plainclothes officers. She and her spouse were then transported to the Nanyuki Police station.
“I came to Nanyuki to exercise my rights, but to my surprise, I saw three police cars following me. They blocked the road, took my phone, and told me to get out with my husband. After that, they took me to the police station, where I was detained for hours without being told why I had been arrested,” Sarolyne said.
She was asked to write a statement with the Crime and Investigation office after spending nearly four hours in detention at the DCI offices without being informed of the reason for her arrest. It was reported that the police had evidence linking her to incitement.
A few hours later, at approximately 8:00 p.m., former Laikipia Woman Representative Cate Waruguru paid a visit to the police station and requested that Sarolyne be released right away from what she claimed was an unlawful arrest because there was no evidence to back up the accusations.
According to Sarolyne’s lawyer, she and her spouse had previously received a KSh50,000 bail but the lawyer insisted on seeing the proof of the charges leveled against her before paying the money.
After about 30 minutes, Sarolyne was reportedly released from custody at around 9.00 p.m. that day and told to go without facing any charges.
This caused conflicting reactions about why Sarolyne had actually been arrested and held for nearly seven hours.
Speaking to the media outside the police station after her release, Sarolyne condemned her arrest, claiming that it was a politically motivated attempt to scare individuals who are against the impeachment of Deputy President Riathi Gachagua.
Sarolyne continued, “The time is now, we will not be intimidated, and we are saying if truly the Deputy President is not innocent, the MPs should not use that as an excuse of not doing their mandate other than using the same energy to impeach Gachagua.”
Former Woman Rep. Cate Waruguru reiterated her views, criticising the way the criminal justice system is operated.
“Whoever gave the police those false allegations is a coward because the evidence does not support the impeachment and they should respect the voice of the people,” said Waruguru.
She continued by saying that they will back Gachagua and that, in the event that he is impeached, they will rally other Kenyans to demand the president’s impeachment and the recall of all Members of Parliament.
