Three Weeks on, Chinedu Proves too Hard to Chew for Kenya
Kenyan government officials and airline crew are spending their third week in Lagos, Nigeria after escorting deportees Anthony Chinedu and company. The group of 12 who include seven state officials and five airline crew remain detained at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport for what Nigerian government officials term as ‘unprocedural deportation’ of Chinedu.
The deportations were ordered on Monday 3rd June by Prof. Githu Muigai, Kenya’s Attorney General and Acting Interior Cabinet Secretary. This move has clearly stuck a finger in the wrong diplomatic hole. While Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Abdala has repeatedly insisted consultations were ongoing with the Nigerian Government over the past week, very little progress has been recorded. “There are a lot of bilateral consultations between the two governments to see how the issue can be resolved. I can’t give you more information as it will complicate issues under consultation,” she said.
During this year’s Madaraka Day celebrations President Uhuru Kenyatta promised to deal firmly with ‘merchants of destruction’ in reference to drug lords. According to The Standard (June 9th 2013), government officials who include Barasa Okosa, Kivuva Muthama, Pardala Dipason, Kariuki Ngugi, Mungathia Muriira, Mutinda Kakindu, and Andrew Kambi accompanied the deportees aboard a privately hired airline. They have since been detained- a fact that appears to underline Chinedu’s inter-governmental influence.
But this won’t be the first high profile deportation of individuals from Kenya. In 2006, the flamboyant Artur brothers became the most famous deportees ever due to the media and public attention they gathered. Artur Sargasyan and Artur Margaryan allegedly had links to the then first family and frequently used VIP facilities. They also gained a reputation for being violent socialites and had to be whisked away in equally controversial circumstances. Chinedu on the other hand was previously deported but mysteriously sneaked back into the country. He has also had brushes with the law over domestic and property matters besides recent alleged links to narcotic trade.
The deportation of Chinedu and 20 other suspected narcotics dealers was ordered under a 2011 law that sidesteps court procedures. While the Government of Kenya insists it will not engage Chinedu on negotiations concerning his return, it remains unclear when the detained officials will be released even as the Kenyan public remains keen on the turn of events. Meanwhile, Chinedu’s demands for compensation equivalent to his assets in Kenya to secure release of the captives have put to question exactly what power he wields in Nigeria. As the court of public opinion would put it, ‘Afro-cinema continues shortly’.
By Mark Namaswa
