Jubilee Party blogger Pauline Njoroge has for the first time recounted what transpired during her dramatic arrest in Malindi on Saturday, July 22.
According to Njoroge, who made the revelations in a statement on Thursday, July 27, her warrant of arrest had been issued midweek on Wednesday when the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) immediately started tracking her.
Detectives arrested Njoroge alongside her friend Jane Nduta and their driver while the car was detained at the police station, causing widespread condemnation.
In her recount, she said she received a call from a stranger on Friday evening who claimed to have confidential documents that he needed to hand over to her.
Also Read: Pauline Njoroge Allegedly Found with Drugs
“The caller had identified himself as a person working for a bank. This person claimed that he had some confidential documents that he wanted to give me in Malindi and asked me to go alone,” said Njoroge.
“This startled me because I had not posted anywhere that I was at the Coast,” she adds.
Her friend Receives a Second Call
Having ignored the pleas by the caller, Njoroge said her friend Nduta received a call on Saturday morning from a person who wanted to know whether she does tours in Mombasa.
Finding it suspicious, they decided to ignore it for the second time.
“We discussed these things and decided to carry on with our day. We left the hotel that afternoon to go see Gedi Ruins, Hells Kitchen and the first Church in Malindi, which was set up by the Portuguese.
When we left the hotel, we found a double cabin vehicle parked outside the resort. Nduta commented that the occupants had the demeanor of police officers, but our driver Emmanuel told us they were probably just neighbours,” she recalled.
After hardly a kilometer towards the tarmac, Njoroge claims that the same vehicle blocked them on the road and ordered them to Watamu Police Station.
She managed to alert her advocates and friends before her phone was taken away.
“They however allowed Nduta to keep hers so long as it was within their sight. The situation, however, changed and even her phone was confiscated. They also took Emmanuel’s phone,” she narrated.
The police then began interrogating her and her friend.
“The three of us were locked up and one of our lawyers who came to the station that night read to us the OB statement which was already in circulation,” said Njoroge.
She added that the OB indicated that they had been arrested for being in possession of narcotics and psychotropic substances.
In a detailed statement, she gave the accounts of how the three of them spent two nights in the cells.
Also Read: Miguna Mocks DPP Office After Pauline Njoroge Saga
Delays on Court Arraignment
“On Monday we were up by 5am, ready to be presented to court that morning. But my midday we were still in the cell not knowing what was happening,” she said.
They arrived at the Malindi court at around 2pm and were availed with the court documents.
“The only document available at the time was an application with 15 counts, but there was no charge sheet. The prosecutor brought the charge sheet when the court was already in session, therefore it could not be admitted,” added Ms Njoroge.
Njoroge indicated that in all the 15 counts in the application, none of them touched Nduta and the driver.
Her Message
In her statement, Pauline Njoroge, a staunch supporter of the former President Uhuru Kenyatta, vowed not to be cowed by the ruling regime.
“I shall not be silenced! By detaining us, you only strengthened our resolve. We will not sit and watch as some fellows try to turn the clock back, recreating our country’s dark past.”
She added, “Patriots of that generation sacrificed sweat and blood to liberate our country from dictatorship, so that we may have the democratic space we currently enjoy.
Because of our present circumstances, the responsibility to guard jealousy and our hard-earned freedom has fallen upon our generation. We must bear that responsibility bravely.”
