Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

- Roots party leader George Wajackoyah has joined mounting calls for accountability in the death of 26-year-old blogger Albert Omondi Ojwang.

The outspoken politician has demanded the immediate suspension of Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Eliud Lagat.

During an interview on TV 47 on Monday, June 9, Wajackoyah said he was shocked to see that Lagat, the same officer who lodged the complaint that led to Ojwang’s arrest, was standing alongside Inspector General Douglas Kanja at a police press conference updating the public on the case.

"I am so sad; it's very heartening. I did call Kanja before I came here to speak with him on a friendly basis, and what I can say at the moment now that I've seen the news that I didn't see before, that the complainant was Lagat," Wajackoyah said.

In his characteristic blunt style, Wajackoyah did not hold back as he raised critical legal and procedural questions about the role Lagat has continued to play, even after it became clear his complaint had a direct link to Ojwang’s arrest and subsequent death in police custody.

"Why is Lagat still attending press conferences? If he knows he's a complainant, is he attending a press conference when he knows that the cause of death of this person has come as a result of his complaint?" Wajackoyah posed.

He demanded that DIG Lagat be suspended immediately to allow for an impartial investigation.

He also called for all the officers involved in Ojwang’s arrest to be publicly named and suspended.

"Lagat should be suspended with immediate effect to go home until the inquiry is done. The officers who went to Homa Bay, if they were from the DCI, their names should be made public and they should equally be suspended with immediate effect. Have they suspended the wrong people," the Roots party leader opined.

According to the police, Ojwang was arrested in Homa Bay on Saturday, June 7, by DCI officers over allegations of false publication.

He was transported to Nairobi and booked at Central Police Station at 9:35pm under OB number 136/7/6 of 2025.

He was later found unconscious in his cell during a routine inspection and pronounced dead at the hospital.

IG Kanja confirmed that the arrest was prompted by a complaint from DIG Lagat, who claimed Ojwang had tarnished his reputation on social media.

Kanja has since defended the arrest as lawful and stated that proper procedures were followed.

But Wajackoyah disagreed, citing the US landmark Miranda v. Arizona ruling as an example of how suspects must be informed of their rights.

He questioned whether Ojwang was told the reason for his arrest, whether he had access to legal counsel, and whether the arresting officers followed due process.

"In this case, if the complainant was Lagat, did he actually book that in the OB? We need to see that OB because he was the complainant. Did he write a statement to that effect? We need to see that statement. Did he have evidence? We need to see that evidence. And then was this gentleman, the late, accorded his constitutional rights?" Wajackoya stated.

He further questioned why Ojwang was transported all the way from Homa Bay to Nairobi, rather than being processed locally.

His remarks add to a growing public outcry that includes statements from former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua, who has also pointed a finger at DIG Lagat.

Gachagua called Ojwang's death a “brutal murder” and accused Lagat of running torture chambers at Kamukunji and Central Police Stations.

He argued that Lagat’s continued presence in office undermines the integrity of the ongoing investigations.

Source: TUKO.co.ke