The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has said Covid-19 delayed the prosecution of Embakasi East Member of Parliament(MP) Babu Owino in the shooting of Felix Orinda alias DJ Evolve.

In a Twitter statement released Tuesday, the DPP’s office said the matter was affected by Covid-19 directions on scaling down court operations.

“The matter was scheduled for mention on 20/3/2020 but was affected by the Covid19 directions issued by the NCAJ on 16/3/2020 scaling down court operations,” read the statement.

The response from the DPP’s office came after a countrywide outcry over justice for DJ Evolve. After the story of DJ Evolve was aired by NTV Monday, activists blamed the DPP for not speeding up the prosecution of the parliamentarian.

The DJ was shot by MP Paul Ongili alias Babu Owino at a club in Nairobi. The MP who was later arrested and charged with attempted murder. Babu Owino, however, managed to secure a bail.

The DPP also said the ‘inability’ of DJ evolve to record a statement has slowed the process.

“Prosecution of Embakasi MP Paul Ongili Babu Owino over attempted murder of DJ Evolve has been slowed down by the inability of the victim to record a statement following the shooting which affected his speech,” read a statement from the DPP.

More on This Case;

• DPP seeks cancellation of Babu Owino’s bail terms, cites error in law
• Babu Owino freed on Sh10m cash bail in shooting case
• Details emerge over gun Babu Owino allegedly used to shoot DJ

Petition

On Tuesday, Kenyans began an online petition to demand Justice for DJ Evolve.

The petition hosted by Change Org had 42, 376 signatures by Tuesday 8.30 pm out of the 50,000 required. Once full, the petitioners will send a plea to Kenya’s Judiciary to speed up the prosecution process.