Jubilee Party Deputy Leader Fred Matiang’i has urged President William Ruto to form a judicial commission of inquiry into the discovery of dozens of bodies in River Yala, declaring his complete readiness to testify under oath.
Speaking during an interview on Inooro Radio on Wednesday, September 2, the former Interior Cabinet Secretary addressed the mystery surrounding the 36 bodies retrieved from the river between 2021 and 2022. Matiang’i maintained that he has nothing to hide and wants all top officials who served on the National Security Council during that period to account publicly for their knowledge.
“On the issue of River Yala, I am the one who called for a commission of inquiry. I said that if there is an issue about what I said and what was said in the Security Council, then we should go public,” he said.
Matiang’i directly challenged President Ruto to institute the public probe, promising to be the first witness to appear.
“You can set up a commission of inquiry even at KICC. I am ready to swear with the Bible. I will be the first to arrive there very early in the morning,” he stated.
Pointing to the security architecture of the previous administration, Matiang’i highlighted that President Ruto served as Deputy President during the discoveries, while Joseph Boinett, who now serves as Ruto’s national security adviser, headed the police service as Inspector General.
“At the time, the current president was the deputy president, and his current security adviser, Joseph Boinett, was the inspector general. Then the judge will decide. I do not see any problem there,” Matiang’i said.
Welcoming formal scrutiny, Matiang’i invited anyone with incriminating evidence against him to present it directly to law enforcement agencies for immediate action.
“If anyone has anything about me, let them come forward and go to the DCI and report. Let the file be opened and let me be charged,” he said.
At the same time, Matiang’i defended his record regarding the controversial Ksh1.5 billion Ruaraka land acquisition payout, distancing himself from claims of financial impropriety during his tenure as Education Cabinet Secretary.
“This thing happened when I was the Minister for Education. The law was followed, and all the processes were also followed,” he said.
Matiang’i explained that the National Land Commission (NLC) held statutory responsibility for the compulsory acquisition process, pointing out that both the High Court and Court of Appeal cleared his former ministry of any wrongdoing.
“We followed the law and even got approval from the Attorney General and even the Treasury. And in fact, this matter was for the National Land Commission and not for us as a ministry,” he stated, adding that “the issue went to the Court of Appeal and out of the 68 pages of the ruling, none touched on the Ministry of Education that I was involved in any way.”
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