Nominated Member of Parliament Sabina Chege has revealed the diplomatic role President William Ruto played in delaying the execution of Kenyan Margaret Nduta in Vietnam.
The Kenyan was recently sentenced to death after being found guilty of smuggling drugs in Vietnam.
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Chege while speaking to the media at Nduta’s rural home in Murang’a County revealed that Nduta is alive, adding that President Ruto and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs played a key role in halting the scheduled execution.
“When the matter came in, I raised it in Parliament and I also raised it with the Head of State, and I want to thank him because he has followed up with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our consulate and we have also had our Embassy from Bangkok doing the communication with Vietnam,” Sabina said.
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“There is a lot of diplomacy and communication going on, but the best bit of it is that Nduta is not going to be hanged now. There are a lot of talks going on and very soon, the government will give its position once the negotiations are done.”
Also Read: What Next for Margaret Nduta? Execution Date Passes Amid New Revelations
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Sabina Chege on rogue recruitment agencies
At the same time, Chege said that the government needs to tighten the scrutiny and regulations around employment agencies that allegedly lure unsuspecting Kenyans into lives of crime and urged caution.
“In Parliament we going to actually I’m going to personally take up the matter and I also raise the matter with the President that we must vet the agencies that are recruiting our children promising them Green Pastures but when they go the other side, they suffer they run away from them,” she said.
Also Read: Ruto’s Govt Speaks Hours Before Nduta’s Execution in Vietnam
37-year-old Nduta had been scheduled to be executed on Monday evening by lethal injection for her conviction on drug trafficking charges.
She was arrested in 2023 when she arrived at an airport in Vietnam’s capital in possession of 2 kg of cocaine. However, her family maintains she was set up.
“They were two ladies, and Nduta was informed that she would be the last to leave. When her departure date came, she told me that she had been informed that her travelling bag was small and that it was old. She was handed over a new bag which she was instructed to pack her clothes in,” said Wambui Macharia, Nduta’s sister.
As the clock ticked towards the execution date, the government swung into action taking a stay of execution or clemency.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs activated Kenya’s embassy in Thailand to stop Nduta’s execution, and the efforts seems to have bought Nduta some more time.
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