NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 7 – ODM Director of Communications Philip Etale was arrested in Malindi early on Monday over allegations of being in possession of election material.
The party spokesman Dennis Onyango said Etale was picked up from his room by 20 police officers at 1am.
“Three officers led by Malindi OCPD accompanied by one Inspector Kiprono and two others moved into Etale’s room as others waited outside,” Onyango said in a statement.
Etale was being held at the Kilifi Police Station where the officers were demanding his laptops after confiscating his mobile phone as part of investigations, to establish if indeed he had the said materials.
And following Etale’s arrest, Opposition leader Raila Odinga asked all CORD MPs and other elected leaders who were assigned to monitor Malindi polls as super agents to report and remain at the polling stations until the end of the voting exercise.
While describing the arrest as “arbitrary” Odinga stated that leaders must take up their roles at the polling stations and in getting out voters without any diversions or delays.
“We are concerned at the campaign of blackmail and arm-twisting that is being adopted in the region manifested in arbitrary arrests including that of Mr Philip Etale and we have assigned senators James Orengo and Johnson Muthama to take up the case of Mr Etale,” the statement from the party spokesman said.
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