Kenya: Turkey Speaks Out About Man in Ruto’s Abortive Trip
]
The Turkish Embassy in Nairobi has clarified the identity of the Turk who was part of the delegation in Deputy President William Ruto’s abortive trip to Uganda that is now the subject of a parliamentary inquiry.
Mr Harun Aydin, the man listed on the passenger manifest of the aircraft that was to fly the DP to Uganda for a private visit on Monday, is an investor who had visited Kenya several times, an official from the Turkish Embassy told Nation.Africa yesterday.
Turkish authorities explained Mr Aydin is a law abiding citizen who had travelled to Nairobi legally on a Turkish passport.
The official did not divulge the nature of his investments but disclosed that Turkish authorities had clarified to the Kenyan government that Mr Aydin has no criminal record and has travelled to Kenya on many occasions.
Yesterday, Nation.Africa reported Mr Aydin, 54, who first arrived in the country on May 30, 2018, has been making frequent visits to Kenya.
This year, the Turk, whose mission to Kenya was not immediately clear, has so far made six trips to Kenya originating from Istanbul, Cairo and Addis.
The inclusion in the Phoenix flight of the Turk whose exact role within DP’s camp is still unclear reportedly caused an uproar.
Private engagements
Yesterday, Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi, who was also in the DP’s entourage and was cleared to proceed with the trip, insisted Mr Aydin is a fruit farmer looking for opportunities in East Africa.
“If anyone is in doubt about the details of Mr Harun then they can visit the Turkish embassy for more information,” said Mr Sudi who made it to Uganda alongside fellow lawmaker, Mr Ndindi Nyoro.
“Their only job description when they wake up is how to clip the support the DP enjoys across the country and especially Mt Kenya. Unfortunately it has been a futile exercise,” Mr Nyoro alleged of powerful figures in government.
A tracking of the Cessna 560 XL registration 5Y WHB shows it left Wilson Airport at 5:26 pm and landed in Entebbe shortly before 6:30pm. By this time, the DP who had stayed at the airport for more than an hour had gone back to his Karen residence.
And it emerged the Ugandan government had been informed about the DP’s visit to Uganda but his office failed to inform the Office of the President about his intended foreign travel.
Why the DP’s office did not inform the Head of Civil Service or the Office of the President on his intended travel and whether it was necessary for him to do so fueled debate yesterday about Monday’s drama at Wilson Airport.
“The President has blocked the DP from performing his official duties and now he is blocking him from his private engagements. This is a ridiculous show of deep sense of insecurity and tactlessness,” said Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen.
Also Read:
Secrets of Ruto, Museveni talks as race to succeed Uhuru rages
Ruto-Museveni dalliance raises political eyebrows
While no senior government official would speak on record due to the political heat the aborted trip has generated, and given the seniority of the DP, those who spoke confidentially insisted he was blocked because he did not simply follow procedure.
“All government officials can only leave the country, and in fact can only leave their stations, with permission from the Head of Public Service. Just like you cannot leave work without the permission from your boss,” a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
As a holder of a diplomatic passport number DK 0220 issued to him in his capacity as the Deputy President, the DP’s office is supposed to inform the State whenever he intends to travel outside the country for security and logistical reasons.
Sources said some powerful State officials who had grown uncomfortable with the increasing number of private foreign travels by the DP suddenly decided to enforce protocols on the travel by State officers.
The protocols have been there all along but were not being enforced strictly on the DP courtesy of the seniority of his office. In the last one year, Dr Ruto has been to Botswana, Dubai and Sudan on private visits without raising a lot of eyebrows.
The visits, some of which have had political undertones, specifically seeking international networks and support, have usually included the same entourage of the DP’s closest allies like Mr Sudi, his personal assistant Farouk Kibet, David Lagat among other politicians and businessmen.
In the recent past, Dr Ruto has also hosted a number of foreign envoys at his official Nairobi residence, including the US ambassador and the British High Commissioner to Kenya, where he is believed to have raised concerns about the next elections.
Unnecessary conflict
In the National Assembly, Ruaraka MP TJ Kajwang’ yesterday demanded an explanation as to the reasons for barring the DP from departure at Wilson airport on Monday for what his office has described a private visit to the neighbouring country.
Mr Kajwang’ rose on a point of order asking for an explanation from the Speaker. Deputy Speaker Moses Cheboi was presiding over the afternoon session.
The lawmaker said what happened to the Deputy President is an embarrassment and brings unnecessary conflict between him and the President.
“I’m standing on a serious matter and I request members who want to be trivial about this issue to please hold their horses,” Mr Kajwang’ said.
“It’s so serious that a whole Deputy can be ridiculed in the manner I saw yesterday just because of protocol issues,” added the ODM lawmaker.
The vice chairperson of the Justice and Legal Affairs committee also wants the Speaker to rule whether three MPs who were with Dr Ruto were cleared to travel by the office of the Speaker as required by the House Standing Orders.
Mr Kajwang’ wants the Speaker to disclose the reasons advanced by the three MPs on why they were traveling to Uganda.
Proceeded with trip
MPs Oscar Sudi (Kapseret), Benjamin Tayari (Kinango) and Ndindi Nyoro (Kiharu) eventually proceeded with the trip.
Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Governance Kenya Uganda By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.
“The members went there in what they call a private visit but there is nothing private about a public officer. It would be interesting to know what these three members went to do there. I want to know if the members notified the Speaker,” Mr Kajwang’ said.
“This is a very serious issue, we must know why a DP was barred from traveling,” said Kisii woman representative Janet Ongera said.
Mr Cheboi directed Mr Kajwang’ to raise the matter formerly with his office so that it can be given the attention required.
Frontier Service Group Ltd, run by former US Navy Seal and co-founder of the controversial Blackwater private security firm, Erik Prince in 2014 acquired 49 per cent stake in Phoenix, and its aviation assets, in a deal valued at $14 million.
The airline, founded by the late Bill Parkinson-an Irishman with Kenyan citizenship, has operated from Wilson Airport in Nairobi, Kenya since 1994, offering passenger charter services, VIP transport, cargo flights, MRO operations, search and rescue operations, and air ambulance services.
In its website, it says it flies to over 2,000 destinations worldwide offering air charter services, and not scheduled flights.
Phoenix, with over 40 employees, currently operates a fleet of Cessna aircrafts that boasts of private jets and turbo pops. Its fleet of private jets includes a Cessna Citation Excel C560XL and a Cessna Citation Bravo C550B. It also has a Beechcraft King Air B300, and Beechcraft King Air B200 in its fleet.
Kenya celebrates anniversary of Turkey’s failed 2016 coup attempt
]
Hundreds of Kenyans, including officials and ambassadors, gathered Saturday in Kenya’s Nairobi to celebrate and honor those who lost their lives during the coup attempt in Turkey in 2016.
Guests for Turkey’s Democracy and National Unity Day included Turkish graduates, members of parliament, senators, governors and their deputies.
Dr. Abdi Issa, a Turkish graduate and deputy governor of Isiolo County in Kenya was also present at the event. Issa learned of the attack in Turkey by the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) while conducting a complex surgery and was so shaken that he had to be replaced with another doctor. “I was working in a very busy hospital in London in an emergency and almost at midnight I heard people chatting about something happening in my country, Turkey,” said Issa.
“They knew I was in London but trained in Turkey, I stopped and started investigating and I found that there was something very serious challenging the democracy of the very powerful nation of Turkey by a terrorist organization,” he said.
Issa went to a mosque and started praying for the people of Turkey.
“Within two hours the people of Turkey came out in droves and numbers and stopped this coup against a democratically-elected country,” he said.
Issa said he understood the pain of the Turks who strongly defended their nation because in Kenya terrorists who plague the Horn of Africa region conduct attacks, killing innocent people, including children.
Failed coup, lesson on democracy
Issa said he would defend his country with his bare hands if terrorists stormed the parliament and took control of the nation’s national television station. He said after seeing what happened in Turkey, he would fight to protect his country from terrorists who were in tanks and armed to the teeth.
“Kenya was the first African country to condemn the coup in Turkey, as a Kenyan and someone who loves their country … if the army came to bomb our parliament – those are terror activities, we will not accept – the population would wake up and they would fight with their bare hands to stop any kind of attack to the institution of democracy in our country,” he said.
Issa said the world learned a very important lesson on matters concerning democracy during the failed coup and noted that “the power elected by the people can never be taken by few elements who have terroristic tendencies. Democracy is a tradition for all countries to strive for. It is a power of the people by the people, this is a lesson to us and the world in general that July 15 should never happen again in the history of the world.”
Closing of FETÖ schools
Issa urged schools and institutions across Kenya and Africa that are supported by the FETÖ to be investigated and abolished.
“I think the organizations should be investigated and their curriculum should be checked to ensure they are not having a negative influence on innocent young minds. We are always against this, we want people to go to proper schools and learn about democracy,” he said.
Turkish Ambassador to Kenya Ahmet Cemil Miroğlu thanked Kenya for standing with Turkey during the attempted coup, noting that Turkey will never forget the show of solidarity it received from Kenya. Miroğlu said terrorist groups such as FETÖ are hidden across Africa, disguised as schools and charities and he thanked African governments for investigating and closing those facilities.
“The organization which lost its backbone in Turkey has been trying to survive by making use of its structure abroad, thus fighting against the structures of FETÖ abroad has gained significance,” he said.
Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) Nairobi coordinator Eyüp Yavuz Ümütlü who was at the event told Anadolu Agency (AA) that people who heard the talk found it very informative and said it “opened their eyes.”
Turkish Maarif Foundation Kenya Director Adem Koç said that it had 359 educational institutions in 44 countries –19 in Africa – with a total of 41,000 students.
“In many countries, hundreds of schools formally affiliated to FETÖ have been taken over by the government and handed over to the Maarif Foundation,” he said. “In Africa particularly, these transfers have eliminated the lobbying of the FETÖ terror group which uses its schools as cover for its dangerous motives,” he explained.
FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gülen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people dead and 2,734 injured.
Ankara accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
When Machakos Pastor Scared Kenyan President With Assassination Plan
]
The arrest of Deputy President William Ruto’s associate Aydin Harun’s has once again put Kenya at the centre of a diplomatic crisis involving three capitals - Nairobi, Kampala (Uganda), and Ankara (Turkey).
It all began when Ruto was blocked from travelling to Uganda for not seeking approval from the relevant authority. Aydin, on the other hand, managed to fly out but upon return, he was detained at Wilson Airport.
Since the tussle began, the relationship between Kenya and Uganda has been on a downward spiral with a citizen from the neighbouring country having filed a suit against Kenya over the utterances by a section of ODM leaders.
The situation mimics a near bloodbath between Kenya and the USA in 1986 in what had emerged as a plot to assassinate the then President Daniel Moi alongside three other African Heads of State.
Undated image of the Late retired President Daniel Moi Twitter
A report by Time Magazine indicated that the plot was predicated on a letter purportedly authored by Ku Klux Klan.
The target governments to be toppled at the time included those Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The letter also had names of fifteen missionaries who were reportedly being used by the white supremacist group to kill African statesmen.
Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was reportedly raising Ksh1 billion to help carry out the mission but had only managed to fundraise Ksh800 million.
The missive was first printed on the front pages of Kenyan newspapers and led to President Moi deporting 15 American Missionaries linked to the plan, some who had operated in Kenya for over 12 years.
The situation, however, quickly escalated when an ailing American missionary died while in the custody of the Kenyan police.
The US government was infuriated and the then US ambassador to Kenyan Elinor Constable threatened Kenya with war and Moi ordered the release of the missionaries.
“I don’t give a damn what you guys publish in your stupid newspapers. But if you touch one American citizen, it’s war. I will pull out the stops here. You will be so sorry,” Constable told Moi as the situation deteriorated.
It was later revealed that the letter originated from an obscure Kenyan pastor, David Kimweli, who had had a stint living in the United States where he accumulated money supposedly for carrying out missionary works in Africa.
During his visit to the US, Kimweli had visited Boone’s Foscoe Christian Church where he claimed that he had managed to convert whole villages to Christianity while performing a barrage of miracles.
When he secured the money, however, he is said to have led a luxury lifestyle, nothing like what he had promised his benefactors in the states.
One of the missionaries, Paul Hamilton, revealed that he sold his house in the US to come to Africa after hearing the pastor’s good work.
Fearing the visiting missionaries would discover his conmanship, the Machakos native penned the letter -implicating the entire delegation that was supposed to inspect his work.