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Kenya’s former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga now claims the country has been a dictatorship since colonial times, following increases cases of abductions and police brutality.

Mutunga was responding to activist Boniface Mwangi, who claimed that the country is being turned into a dictatorship by President William Ruto.

“Kenya has been a dictatorship since colonialism,” Mutunga stated on X on Saturday, January 4, 2025.

According to Mwangi, Ruto has been orchestrating abductions and police brutality against his critics since June 25, 2024, at the heigh of anti-government protests.

“This is what President @WilliamsRuto did on 25 June 2024. Today, he is abducting his critics, and if you dare protest, you’re arrested. Kenya is becoming a dictatorship,” Mwangi claimed in a post on X on January 3, 2025.

Ruto responds

Speaking on Friday, Ruto distanced himself from abduction querries, throwing the ball to the National Police Service, whom he claimed have the mandate of investigating such incidences.

“The National Police Service, being an independent body, is able to conduct investigations. The law should not apply selectively to keep everybody on the right side of the law,” Ruto said.

The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) in December 2024 reported that there have been 13 more cases of abductions or enforced disappearances in the last three months.

In a statement on Thursday, December 26, 2024, KNCHR said there have been 82 cases of abductions and forced disappearances since June 2024.

The body says seven of the recent abduction cases were reported in December 2024 with six of them still missing, bringing to 29 the total number of persons still missing since June 2024.

“The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) continues to monitor with concern the worrying pattern of abductions in several parts of our country. The Commission notes that these abductions are perpetuated clandestinely, with unidentified armed persons. The Commission further notes that those abducted have been vocal dissidents, particularly on social platforms. There have been 13 more cases of abductions or enforced disappearances in the last three months bringing to 82 the total cases since June 2024,” KNCHR says.

“Seven of the recent abduction cases were reported in the month of December 2024 with six of them still missing, bringing to 29 the total number of persons still missing since June 2024. The Commission strongly condemns these abductions which fall outside the dictates of the Constitution. Abductions are torture, cruel, degrading and inhuman treatment: a non derogable right. They have no place in a democratic state like ours! The Commission warns that if these patterns of abductions continue, then we shall be rapidly retrogressing back to the dark days of our history when such attacks were primarily to inflict fear on any person critical of the Government.”

Among those reported abducted in December 2024 include Steve Kavingo Mbisi, Billy Wanyiri Mwangi, Peter Muteti, Bernard Kavuli, Naomi aka @Jabertotoo, Gideon Kibet aka Kibet Bull and Rony Kiplang’at.