RAILA: ODM TO SPILL MORE BEANS ON THE ARMENIANS
Daily Nation, Kenya
March 15 2006
Lang’ata MP Raila Odinga yesterday evening recorded another statement
with police over his claim that the two Armenians currently in the
country are mercenaries.
And he declared that the Orange Democratic Movement would today tell
Kenyans more about the Armenians’ activities and their link to the
Government.
The former Roads minister, who first raised the issue of the
foreigners, said he had gone to give more “urgent information” to an
investigating officer on behalf of the movement.
And he accused the Government of helping the foreigners to concoct
untruths that they had bribed him.
The MP said: “This (lie) is something being concocted by themselves
and the Government.”
In another development, sources said that following Mwingi North MP
Kalonzo Musyoka’s questioning yesterday, police had been asked to go
“slow” on the matter.
The instructions were given as Mr Odinga went to the Kilimani police
station to give what he called “additional, crucial and urgent”
information about the alleged mercenaries.
Mr Odinga was accompanied by his lawyer, Mr Kenneth Marende, who is
also the MP for Emuhaya, during the two and half hours he spent with
the police.
With him were MPs Orwa Ojodeh, Reuben Ndolo and William Omondi.
Mr Odinga, who walked out of the CID office at 7.30pm, said: “We felt
the information that we have is crucially urgent and needed immediate
attention.” He said he had decided to give the police additional
information which, he noted, he had received in the last few days.
Sources said the Liberal Democratic Party leader gave the officers
information on vehicles the Armenian brothers – Artur Sargsyan and
Artur Margaryan – were using and the link they had with powerful
people in the Kibaki Government.
He was also said to have clarified some issues in his first statement.
The Lang’ata MP said that the fact that the foreigners could “concoct
untruths” about him showed that they were up to no good.
“The fact that these characters can concoct statements shows how
dangerous they are,” he said.
“I do not know these characters.”
He maintained that he did not know the two foreigners and dismissed
as rubbish the claim that they had given him Sh108 million in Kenya
and an additional Sh100,000 in Dubai.
Mr Sargsyan and Mr Margaryan have denied being mercenaries, saying
that they are businessmen who are being framed by Mr Odinga so that
he may not pay back the money.
Mr Odinga said he would take legal action against Environment minister
Kivutha Kibwana over his remarks over his link with mercenaries.
He said Prof Kibwana had shown that he (Kibwana) was “an apologist
of one of the most heinous governments” the country had ever had.
After a government of national unity meeting on Tuesday, Prof Kibwana
accused Mr Odinga of acting with impunity by saying that he knew the
presence of mercenaries in the country.
Prof Kibwana questioned how Mr Odinga knew the whereabouts of the
two foreigners if he did not have an intelligence network of his own.