Three Kenyan journalists arrested over ‘fabricated’ news on president

NAIROBI – Kenyan police said yesterday they had arrested three journalists over an article alleging that President Mwai Kibaki held secret talks with a lawmaker who had successfully rallied opposition to constitutional reform last year.

Standard newspaper weekend editions managing editor Chacha Mwita, news editor Dennis Onyango and reporter Ayub Savula were arrested late on Tuesday after presenting themselves to Nairobi’s Central Police Station over the article, which the government had dismissed as “fabricated”, police said. After recording statements, the men were locked in the capital’s Kileleshwa police post, said Danson Diru, a police’s criminal police investigations (CID) officer, told AFP.In a front-page article two weeks ago, the trio reported that Kibaki held secret talks with Kalonzo Musyoka, a former environment minister who was fired last November alongside several other ministers, for successfully campaigning against the draft constitution.Under the headline, “Kalonzo, Kibaki in secret meeting,” the newspaper reported: “the former minister is said to have expressed a readiness to rejoin the government and take the vice president’s slot.”Standard called the alleged meeting “one of the most sophisticated political manoeuvres by the president yet.”A presidentially-endorsed constitution, which would have made the first changes to the east African country’s 1962 independence charter, was resoundingly defeated by Kenyans in a referendum last November after a violent campaign claimed eight people.Kibaki’s press office and Kalonzo himself later denied such a meeting took place and government spokesman Alfred Mutua demanded Standard newspaper retract the article and apologise for muddying the integrity of the president.- Nampa-AFPAfter recording statements, the men were locked in the capital’s Kileleshwa police post, said Danson Diru, a police’s criminal police investigations (CID) officer, told AFP.In a front-page article two weeks ago, the trio reported that Kibaki held secret talks with Kalonzo Musyoka, a former environment minister who was fired last November alongside several other ministers, for successfully campaigning against the draft constitution.Under the headline, “Kalonzo, Kibaki in secret meeting,” the newspaper reported: “the former minister is said to have expressed a readiness to rejoin the government and take the vice president’s slot.”Standard called the alleged meeting “one of the most sophisticated political manoeuvres by the president yet.”A presidentially-endorsed constitution, which would have made the first changes to the east African country’s 1962 independence charter, was resoundingly defeated by Kenyans in a referendum last November after a violent campaign claimed eight people.Kibaki’s press office and Kalonzo himself later denied such a meeting took place and government spokesman Alfred Mutua demanded Standard newspaper retract the article and apologise for muddying the integrity of the president.- Nampa-AFP