Murkomen defends Ruto’s remarks on abductions, says comments were taken out of context
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has come to the defence of President William Ruto over his recent remarks on abductions, asserting that they have been misinterpreted and taken out of context.
Speaking in Marsabit County on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, Murkomen stated that Ruto’s comments — in which he claimed that the government had stopped abductions and that victims had been returned home — were a reflection of progress in combating crime, not an admission of state involvement.
“Many people misunderstood the President. When you say that we have stopped abductions and people have been returned to their homes, it doesn’t mean that the government was behind the abductions,” Murkomen explained.
He likened Ruto’s comments to other government efforts in tackling crime, such as illegal mining and drug trafficking, emphasising that the government’s terminology does not imply culpability.
“The same way we’ve said we’ve stopped illegal mining in Moyale or reduced drug trafficking in some areas — that’s the same context within which the President spoke,” he elaborated.
“Saying we’ve stopped something doesn’t mean we were doing it,” he added.
According to Murkomen, Ruto’s statement had been “twisted” by critics to suggest government complicity.
“I think it’s very unfortunate that the President has been, and the way it has always been, twisted when he says anything,” he lamented.
Investigations and arrests
He reiterated that Ruto had directed security agencies to confront all criminal elements, including those involved in abductions, disclosing that investigations into reported abductions are ongoing, with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and National Police Service actively pursuing cases.
“The IG and the National Police Service are under the policy direction of the executive, led by the President, to make sure that the country is safe. The day-to-day operation will go o,n and as you know, the National Police Service is carrying out investigations. The DCI is carrying out investigations. People who have been found to have been involved in the abductions must be arrested and charged in a court of law,” he stated.
He cited progress in the case of Brian Odhiambo in Nakuru, noting that the officers who were last seen with him had already been arrested.
“In cases like that of Brian Odhiambo in Nakuru, officers who were involved in his arrest or were last seen with him have already been arrested and charged in court,” Murkomen confirmed, stressing that anyone found culpable would face the law.
He further reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring justice and accountability.
“I can tell you without fear of contradiction that thorough investigations are going on to make sure that all these elements are arrested and apprehended,” he said.
Ruto’s admission
Murkomen’s defence follows Ruto’s remarks on May 12, 2025, during a joint media briefing with Finnish President Alexander Stubb at State House, where he stated that all Kenyans who had been abducted in recent weeks had since been returned to their homes and families.
”There is an accountability mechanism to make sure that that situation is attended to and a proper accountability mechanism is put in place. I undertook to the country that is a democracy and robustly so, Kenyans must not, as it has happened in the past, where Kenyans disappeared and their bodies found in all manner of places, and that will not happen under my administration. All the people who disappeared or were abducted have been brought back to their families and their homes,” he said.
“I have given clear and firm instructions that that kind of nature will not happen again,” he added.
