Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru, who has threatened to sue musician King
Kaka for defamation following release of his "Wajinga Nyinyi" song.
PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru wants
rapper King Kaka to pull down his "Wajinga Nyinyi" song, in which he
mentions her, and apologise for defaming her.
The
governor, in a December 15 letter from Kiragu Wathuta & Company
Advocates to King Kaka, whose real name is Kennedy Ombima, gives him 48
hours to issue a full, unconditional admission of liability in writing.
“
... that you offer unequivocal unqualified and unreserved retraction as
well as an apology to our client subject to review and approval,”
states the letter, which warns the musician of a fresh suit for every
redistribution of the song.
The governor will file the suit on Wednesday if King Kaka will not have fulfilled the demands by then.
"HIGHLY DEFAMATORY"
Governor
Waiguru says the remarks about her in the song are highly defamatory
and depict her as extremely corrupt and having engaged in the theft of
public funds at the National Youth Service (NYS), claims which she notes
are false.
The county boss says the lyrics
suggest she is not fit to be the Kirinyaga County leader and that she
was elected as a result of taking advantage of people's gullibility.
She says these notions lower her regard and esteem as held by the public.
“You
ought to have known that despite extensive investigations and several
prosecutions in relation to the loss of funds at NYS, our client has
never been charged in a court of law as an accused person in relation to
NYS or any other scandal ...," the lawyers say in the letter.
"...
she has been persistently and publicly demanding full investigations of
the matters relating to the NYS affairs and there has been no evidence
whatsoever of her culpability [provided] to, or obtained by the Ethics
and Anti-Corruption Commission on any allegations pertaining to the NYS
affairs."
Governor
Waiguru further complains that the song's release occasioned "grave,
irreparable and permanent damage" to her reputation and accuses King
Kaka of tarnishing her name to increase his popularity and profits.
SUPPORT, CRITICISM
The
song, whose title translates to "You fools", went viral upon its
release on Saturday, earning the musician praise and criticism in equal
measure.
It highlights
the regular Kenya's challenges including poor leadership, corruption,
political exploitation, unemployment, a poor education system and the
state of affairs since the general election in 2017.
In
the song, King Kaka satirises political leaders for false promises,
plunder of public resources and failure to deliver on their promises to
the public.
Among those
who supported the song were 2013 presidential aspirant Abduba Diba,
Kenya Film and Classification Board Chief Executive Officer Ezekiel
Mutua and constitutional lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi.
Dr Mutua praised the rapper and urged Kenyans to reflect on the message.
"The
fact that the rapper can do such a production and walk Scot-free is
evidence that our democracy has come of age. Try that in Uganda or
Rwanda and things will be different," he wrote on his Facebook page.
LEGAL SERVICES
Through his twitter account, King Kaka asked for protection but did not specify from whom.
He further advised his fans to find him at a police station if matters worsen.
Mr
Abdullahi offered the musician his legal services, saying on Twitter
that, “You just said the truth...nothing but the truth...if you need a
lawyer for telling truth to power...give me a shout...#WajingaNyinyi."
The lawyer has been representing Governor Waiguru at the EACC in the NYS matter.
Mr
Dida said on Twitter, “Kenya has about 50 million citizens and less
than 2,000 elective positions. Ironically, when Kenyans get the
opportunity to vote, they always pick the worst possible choices then
spend the following five years crying. #WajingaNyinyi is a good piece of
activist art. Thank you."
OTHER REACTIONS
Kenyans who spoke to the Nation said the song was an eye-opener on Kenya's current state of affairs.
"He is pointing out what is happening in the country right now," one said.
Another
said, "It is a song which speaks without fear or favour and
contradiction because this is the same society we live in all year
round. It's high time the youth spoke their minds the same way King Kaka
did. It is nothing but the truth."
Another Nairobi resident said King Kaka spoke for the quiet Kenyan who does not, or cannot, complain.
"He has done it well in art. He has expressed the feelings of Kenyans," the person said.
Another
said, "We elect people based on [communities], which in the end is not
helpful. My desire is for all Kenyans to learn. We don’t need to elect
leaders because they are from our communities, but leaders who have a
track record and know what they are doing."
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