NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 6 – Radio presenter Joshua arap Sang who will answer summons by International Criminal Court (ICC) regarding the 2008 post-election violence on Thursday has claimed the country could degenerate to chaos if The Hague process is flawed.
“If we go and we find manipulation, malice and no truth coming out of there, I pity Kenyans since I do not know what will happen. If anything happens to Kenyans, then it will be up to them (ICC) if they do not carry out justice,” Mr Sang told K24 Senior Anchor Jeff Koinange on his daily Capital Talk show on the eve of his departure to The Netherlands.
Mr Sang, whose inclusion in the Ocampo Six who will face the court on Thursday and Friday caught most by surprise, stated his eagerness to get to the bottom of the matter when he faces his accusers.
“Someone has framed something and I’m happy to be travelling to The Hague since I’m going to get that opportunity to get to know the charges fully. I’m a journalist, my station has policies and therefore, I cannot attend the kind of political meetings they said I went to organise the violence,” he stated.
The charges against Mr Sang by ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo state: “As early as December 2006, Sang, a prominent Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) supporter, allegedly established, with his co-accused William Samoei Ruto and Henry Kosgey, a network with the goal of gaining power in the Rift Valley Province by committing crimes against supporters of the Party of National Unity (PNU).
Mr Sang allegedly had a major role in the planning and organisation of crimes against PNU supporters by using his radio show both to gain support and also to communicate by code to the members of the network on when and where to commit attacks.
But the Kass FM presenter rubbishes the accusations: “That arap Sang was co-ordinating the Kalenjin community to attack PNU supporters is stupid since they are not only Kikuyu. My former Member of Parliament was vying on a PNU ticket and we had many councillors doing the same. The Minister, Linah Jebii Kilimo is also of PNU and why did we not chase her away?”
He charged: “They should explain which dates were those that I went to (William) Ruto and (Henry) Kosgey to plan the attacks. I went to Ruto’s place two times and he is my friend, I can’t deny that but I was not that close to him before 2007.
“I don’t remember being a meeting with Honourable Kosgey until the inauguration of the Kalenjin Council of Elders in 2010 since we are not that close.”
The vocal Mr Sang attributed his woes to “the need by the ICC to find someone to blame in the media.”
“I did announcements for ODM; announcements were done by all stations and paid for. Why arap Sang? In my knowledge, for a case to qualify in ICC you must have an organisation, military wing and structure in communication or media.”
“Arap Sang is one guy who qualified from the station since I’m loved by the Kalenjin and they had to find somebody whom they could accuse that these other guys were using him to propagate their ideas.”
The host of Kass FM’s morning show, Lene Emet explained he declined ODM’s offer to provide him with defence lawyers stating he was not a registered member of the party.
“I’m not a member of ODM, did not vie for any seat in ODM. If they were offering the money and lawyers to help a human being, a young man like me, I appreciate. But I refused since I will never let them own me; affiliate me to their party and politics. If they wanted to help me for politics, then let them stay with your money.”
Mr Sang dismissed the severity of the charges facing him by declaring, “It was a big surprise to myself and to many. I just laughed because when we were waiting for the names, there some rumours that morning. Someone called in the morning telling me my name was somewhere but I had no idea.”
His plight is reminiscent of Radio Rwanda presenters who were accused of fanning the 1994 genocide by airing messages to the Hutu population to \’kill the Tutsi cockroaches.\’
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