Kitui County Communications Director Munyasya Musya. He has been linked to an online propaganda campaign against Governor Charity Ngilu. PHOTO | KITAVI MUTUA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
5.April,2018
Police in Kitui are looking for the county’s director of communications who has gone into hiding after being linked to an online propaganda campaign against Governor Charity Ngilu.
Mr Munyasya Musya, who was sent on compulsory leave last month, was busted by youths at a Kitui Hotel, while writing a ‘fake story’ to ridicule Mrs Ngilu on social media.
Mr Musya’s phones and laptop, which were alleged to contain incriminating materials linking him to the offensive stories published on various WhatsApp groups using a pseudo name, were confiscated by police.
His junior colleague, Mr Andrew Munyoki Kisamwa, who was found with Mr Musya, was arrested and is in police custody.
Kitui central DCI boss Steven Birgen said detectives were scrutinising the officer’s phones and laptop to verify whether the contents were the same as those published on social media by the pseudo character known as Tharaka.
CYBERCRIME
Mr Birgen told journalists that Mr Musya should have presented himself to the police for questioning if he wasn’t linked to the alleged cybercrime.
“We are waiting for him (Mr Musya) and he hasn’t turned up as requested. We want to establish who ‘Tharaka’ is. We already have his colleague in custody, who is helping our cybercrime police department with investigations,” Mr Birgen said on Thursday.
Mr Birgen said detectives were following vital clues and were zeroing on the mastermind of the smear campaign who is believed to be operating from Nairobi.
He said the officers may face hate speech-related charges in court.
However, Mr Musya told Nation that he was not in hiding, but his life was in danger after an attempt by youths to arrest him.
PERSONAL MATTER
“I’m attending to a personal matter in Nairobi, I decided to stay away because I felt unsafe but I’ll present myself to the police later,” he said on phone on Thursday.
Earlier on Thursday, Mr Musya, in an interview with a vernacular radio station, accused Ms Ngilu of targeting county officers from certain sub counties. He said there was nothing wrong with criticising the county government on social media.
Mr Musya was recruited in 2014 to head former Governor Julius Malombe’s communication unit. The entire team was sent on leave last month after numerous reports linked them to the anti-Ngilu smear campaign.
CORRUPTION
Some of the stories which were circulated to more than 100 WhatsApp groups claimed Governor Ngilu was presiding over a corrupt administration.
The anonymous Tharaka uses nasty and distasteful adjectives to paint Mrs Ngilu negatively and the stories are believed to hurt her political ratings.
On Wednesday, youths rioted as Mrs Ngilu was addressing a rally in Mwingi town, moments after the online group published messages alleging that the governor was marginalising some regions of the county.
County Assembly Majority Leader Peter Kilonzo and Kanziko MCA James Munuve urged the police to be fair in their investigations.
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