ODM responds after IG Koome claims he’s targeted because of his ethnicity

The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party has denied claims that the opposition is targeting the Meru community following a letter to the International Criminal Court (ICC) seeking a probe against Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome over alleged police brutality during recent anti-government demonstrations.

Koome, in a statement on Sunday, April 16, indicated that a senior politician in the opposition was targeting leaders from the Meru community over “personal interests”.

But in its response, the ODM party accused the police boss of playing a tribal card, insisting that he was targeted as the Inspector General of Police and not because of his ethnicity.

“IG Japheth Koome has started playing the tribal card by claiming that he is being targeted because he is from Meru. The letter to the @IntlCrimCourt by Azimio lawyers aims at him as the IG of police and not b’cos of his ethnicity. He issued threats and should carry his own cross,” ODM said in a tweet.

IG Japheth Koome has started playing the tribal card by claiming that he is being targeted because he is from Meru. The letter to the @IntlCrimCourt by Azimio lawyers aims at him as the IG of police and not b’cos of his ethnicity. He issued threats and should carry his own cross.

— The ODM Party (@TheODMparty) April 16, 2023

Earlier, the IG dismissed Azimio la Umoja – One Kenya coalition’s claims that he sanctioned killings of Azimio supporters last month as “a mix of propaganda and half-truths”.

“That is propaganda. There are people who are very good at propaganda. In that letter have they talked about the Kisumu businessman who was crying? Did you see him saying he was rendered bankrupt in one day? Have they talked about a supermarket called Muhindi Mweusi? In one day somebody became a pauper by losing Sh20 million. In that letter, has that been mentioned or is it just mentioning Koome? They have mentioned Koome more than 20 times,” Koome said.

Koome told journalists that he was not intimidated by the letter and urged his officers to continue serving the nation without fear or favour.

“We at the National Police Service are not intimidated by it. I request members of the National Police Service not to be intimidated at all by threats to serve our good country, our good people and the many foreign visitors [we receive],” Koome said.

He said the politician behind the letter, whom he did not name, started by sending the former head of Public Service Francis Muthaura to ICC after the 2007/2008 post-election violence and he has been ‘targeting Merus’ since then.

“That letter is being incited by a certain politician. It started with Muthaura, he was taken there and now it is me. Why are they targeting Meru people? Let us stop this tribal matters,” he added.