Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho has strongly condemned Thursday’s killing of two terror suspects in Junda saying the government has started assassinating Muslims in the name of fighting terror.
Joho threatened to lead demonstrations against extra-judicial killings in Mombasa and demanded proper answers from the government.
“We are tired. We have had enough. We will talk to wananchi who will give us solutions. If it is demonstrations, we will go to the streets,” said Joho after visiting Salim’s family at Bilima in Kisauni.
One of the suspects, Salim Hanjaryu Bedzimba, is a relative of Kisauni MP Rashid Bedzimba, according to close confidante of the MP.
Joho, however, said whether Salim was his ally’s relative or not is immaterial. It is a life lost, he said.
“It is very sad that the government of Uhuru Kenyatta can take away lives of Kenyans arbitrarily. This must stop,” the governor said.
Unconfirmed reports indicate that MP Bedzimba was too distraught to speak.
He remained locked in the house as Joho addressed the press.
Joho said police planted the assorted weapons on the two slain terror suspects. He said the suspects were unarmed and had been walking freely in the estates.
“They should not lie to us because we have enough evidence,” the governor said.
“Salim is somebody who was known. His place of work was known. If he were summoned to the police he would have gone,” Joho said.
The governor said they have reports Salim was shot in front of his 14-year-old son after being made to kneel down.
Joho said they have sufficient evidence of communication between the suspect and the police. He claimed police had already summoned Salim, taken his statement and set him free.
“They set him free so that they could come back to kill him,” Joho said.
“It is not acceptable that all of a sudden a person has turned into a terrorist so that he is followed at home and sprayed with bullets in that manner”.
Police on Thursday said Salim and Kibwana Ahmed Abdallah were shot dead after they opened fire at officers who had surrounded their house in Mshomoroni.
Mombasa county commissioner Maalim Mohamed said police recovered three Russian and Chinese hand grenades, four detonators, 17 rounds of ammunition, two liquid and one plastic explosive, two pairs of energizer batteries among other accessories used in making bombs.
On Friday, Haki Africa programme coordinator Francis Auma said the era of police killing certain communities on flimsy grounds is back.
“This is indoctrinating people to become more radical,” he said.
Joho said more than 200 youth have been killed.
“We will document all these killings. We will
hold demonstrations all over together with civil society. We demand answers,” joho added.
“This blood is in the hands of Jubilee. I cannot sleep four people have been killed arbitrarily in two days. What is this,” he said.
The governor said he will involve international community to seek justice.
“We do not want to lose any more lives in the hands of police,” he said bitterly.
____________________________________________
Also read: Terror suspect Mohamed Tulia shot dead in Kwale
