A Nairobi based attorney who goes by the name Joshua Otieno Ayika has been charged in court after suggesting on Twitter that the military will seize power and reign for 90 days before new elections.
The lawyer, appeared before Makadara Chief Magistrate Francis Kyambia and refuted two accusations of engaging in illegal subversive activity.
Lawyer Charged Over Tweets Predicting Military Takeover in Kenya https://t.co/tGmvR5QoFD #JoshuaOtienoAyika #MilitaryTakeover #PresidentWilliamRuto #Twitter
— Kahawa Tungu (@KahawaTungu) July 25, 2023
The attorney claimed that he had sensed something really exceptional while suggesting that Kenyans should get ready for a military takeover of the government. The lawyer’ s comments came at a time when Odinga was under pressure to organize revolutionary protests across the nation. According to reports, the court was informed that the statements were harmful to the nation’ s security and public order. Further, it was argued that Ayika’ s tweet hinting at a coup against the government require extensive investigations to determine the major reason as to why he was talking of military takeover.
The Nairobi based attorney was charged with count of publishing false information in violation of section 23 of the 2018 Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Act. Ayika through his lawyer Harun Ndubi requested reasonable bond conditions and copies of witness testimony from the court. Ndubi stated that his client was unable to contact his family or attorneys for assistance since he was detained on July 20 and had his phone taken away. Additionally, the attorney requested a court order authorizing the release of the phone, but Joseph Riungu, the assistant director of public prosecutions, objected.
According to Riungu, the suspect used his mobile phone to send the allegedly inciting tweets, and that the phone has been listed as evidence in the case. In that line, the Magistrate stated that the phone will mot be issued back until the case is fully determined. The assistant director of the court also requested a court injunction preventing the attorney from tweeting.
https://ke.opera.news/ke/en/politics/fb437ea0cf844259ad8034a8992f7151
