FORMER military officers sacked over the 1982 attempted coup have said they could not seek compensation from the two previous regimes fearing reprisals. Explaining why it took them 30 years to file the case, the 10 former soldiers said they could not sue during the Moi and Kibaki regimes. They say Raila Odinga, whom they accuse of playing a role in the failed coup, was the Prime Minister during Kibaki’s reign. “It was not possible for any person convicted with treason to claim anything from the Moi regime. It did change when Kibaki came into power but it took long to take a new phase in the political arena since the PM who led the coup was in government,” said James Thandi. The former officers, who all gave an account of what happened in court, yesterday said they were forced to plead guilty to charges of treason. Through lawyer Mbugua Mureithi, they told Justice Isaac Lenaola that they were held in pre- arraignment detention for periods between 61 and 143 days before being charged at the martial court. Others were released without charge and dismissed from the Kenya Air Force without a hearing and without any dues in violation of their fundamental rights to human dignity. They also talked of being sentenced to serve a couple of years in prison, which were later reduced by the jail review board without any explanations.
Posted on: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 09:04:42 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015