Activist Mulinge Muteti has spoken about his ordeal after he was allegedly abducted from his home, questioned over his activism and later found dumped in Lukenya, Machakos County.
Muteti, who was receiving treatment in hospital on Friday, said his alleged abductors had been watching his movements before taking him away.
He said their repeated questioning left him unable to determine exactly why he had been targeted.
“Those people were following me from the house. It’s not the first time,” Muteti said.
According to Muteti, the people who took him repeatedly questioned him about his activities during the ordeal.
“They had so many questions, so it’s hard to know the specific reason. They abducted me and would ask me, ‘Kwa nini nimekuwa nasumbua?’” he said.
Muteti was speaking hours after he was found in the Lukenya area, where he had allegedly been dumped at about 3 am.
His disappearance had raised concern among his family and human rights defenders, who reported the matter to police and called for urgent efforts to locate him.
By the time he spoke from his hospital bed, Muteti appeared visibly shaken as he described what he said happened after he was taken from his home.
Vocal Africa director Hussein Khalid joined other civil society representatives in visiting Muteti after he was found. The groups condemned the reported incident and called for investigations into the circumstances surrounding his disappearance.
Makueni Senator Dan Maanzo, who was also at the hospital, said legal steps would be taken to establish what happened to Muteti and pursue accountability.
Maanzo said they would consider several legal options, including a habeas corpus application, to compel those holding a person to present them before court and explain the basis for their detention.
Habeas corpus is a legal process that allows a court to require authorities or another person holding an individual to produce them before the court and give reasons for the detention.
The case has also drawn attention to the reported disappearance of other activists, with civil society groups calling for action to establish their whereabouts.
The representatives who visited Muteti demanded the immediate release of activist Collins Otieno, who they said was still missing.
“Collins Otieno is still missing. Up to this point in time, we don’t know his whereabouts. We are asking he be released immediately and if anyone has committed any wrong, due process must take place,” Khalid said.
The groups said Otieno’s whereabouts must be established and maintained that any allegations against him, if there are any, should be dealt with through the established legal process.
They also called for a full investigation into Muteti’s disappearance and urged the relevant authorities to establish what happened to him.