Businessman and politician Jimi Wanjigi has finally spoken after police raided his house on Thursday, August 8.
Wanjigi while addressing the press on Friday evening emphasized that political matters should not be brought into his home and should instead remain outside.
“Seven years ago, right on these steps, I had a similar incident and a similar press conference. We were attacked for three days; this time it has been for two days for nothing else but expressing our political right to express ourselves and be part of the democracy our constitution enshrines,” he said.
“They tried looking for me here 7 years ago and couldn’t find me; they tried again yesterday. Stop wasting your time,” he said.
“If you want me, it’s a simple summon and I will appear where you want me. Stop looking for me in this house, you will never find me, never, please we are not fools, we were not born yesterday.”
Wanjigi recalled that his late father once stood on those very steps and made a profound statement, emphasizing the importance of distinguishing between the personal and politics.
“Men argue over politics out here, you don’t bring it to somebody’s personal home. William Ruto, we can argue out here on politics, don’t bring it to my home,” he added.
Also Read: Jimi Wanjigis Family Narrates Ordeal at the Hands of Police
He condemned the police for assaulting his wife and children, whom he referred to as Gen Z.
“You have vandalized the home, you have stolen items here, you have broken items, what has that got to do with the politics we do out there? This is my home. This is where my children are,” he added.
“I can say my children are alive, but there are many children out there who have died since the protests began in June.”
The businessman said that the mothers of the protesters who died are still grieving and questioned why the police are harming people’s children simply for expressing their political will and exercising their right to demonstrate as outlined in Article 37.
Also Read: Relief for Wanjigi as Court Gives Orders on His Arrest
He further recounted his shock during the Nane Nane protests when he went to offer support to Gen Z, only to have them teargassed by the police.
“We hit the streets, we were there no more than five -ten minutes, and we were teargassed like you cannot believe,” Wanjigi said.
“Driving out of town, we were chased, to this home and it has been a siege since that time, where hundreds of police officers had been here, and they have done criminal things, you cannot believe.”
This comes after High Court of Kenya earlier has barred the National Police Service (NPS) from arresting or detaining Wanjigi.
Wanjigi had moved to court seeking to block his arrest over involvement in the widely publicized ‘Nane Nane’ protests staged in Nairobi on Thursday.
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