Episode 2
TIME
ENGLISH
01:24-01:33: Hey (Noise)…Mr.! The violence has started.
01:34-01:36: Started! Where have they started burning?
01:37-01:38: Shut down!
01:38-01:39: Please explain to me!
01:39-01:59: No! Shut down! Shut down! Huryy up! Yes! Yes! Quickly! They have just started.
01:59-02:20: Hello! Yes PPO! This is Ondiek Nyunga Akuota! Yes, I am calling you… things are not
looking good! They have started torching! Where are you? Where… The situation is bad! Do this, send a
helicopter to fly us! Things are bad! Everything has been burnt! Find the way forward! Yes!Yes! They are
coming. (Noise)
Judge: Alexander Josphat!
Accused 1: Yes, my lord!
Judge: You are being accused that, on 20th last month this year, in Narok county, you incited people to
fight and injuring each other, burning other people`s business and destroying property. Do you agree with
the accusations or deny?
Accused 1: I object. I only gave a speech and did my campaign. Just that. I am not aware of inciting
anyone.
Prosecutor: My lord, the prosecution has three witnesses and the truth of this case is that the accused
who was vying for a parliamentary seat in Narok, during his speech, he incited people at the meeting held
in Narok Stadium which lead to war between communities. He said that if those visitors did not vote for
him this time, he would tell the youths to chase them away. And for those who had chunks of land to
leave and leave to the youths. My lord, after the speech, the violence started. People`s property were burnt
and destroyed and people beaten my lord. Today being the hearing of the case, I ask any witness in this
court to kindly walk out.
Accused 1: Now, is he not inciting when using those words?
Prosecutor: Come here!
Witness 1: In here?
Prosecutor: Yes, in here! Yes, Mr.! You came to witness in this court, right?
Witness 1: Yes!
Prosecutor:This is the court!
Witness 1: Ooh! Okay! Yes! Very good!
Court Clerk: Lift up this bible and repeat this words. Say, I Alphonse Makacha. Makokha,
Witness 1: Esie (Luhya language meaning, I) Aphonse Makacha. Makokha,
Court Clerk: Say, I Alphonse Makacha. Makokha,
Witness 1: I Alphonse Makacha. Makokha,
Court Clerk: I swear that,
Witness 1: … that,
Court Clerk: Say, I swear that,
Witness 1: Swear that,
Court Clerk: All the statements I will make before this court,
Witness 1: All the statements I will make before this court,
Court Clerk: Are true,
Witness 1: Obviously; they are true,
Court Clerk: Say, they are true!
Witness 1: They are true,
Court Clerk: Nothing but the whole truth!
Witness 1: Nothing but the whole truth … yes! Of course! I am not telling lies!
Court Clerk: I am not yet done! Say, help me God!
Witness 1: Help me God! They are true! Oh, Sorry!
Prosecutor: What did you say your full name are?
Witness 1: I have just told this madam right now even…
Prosecutor: What is your name? I am asking you what your name is?
Witness 1: Khu rita, banang`anga (luhya language meaning my name is…) Alphonse Makacha.
Makokha.
Prosecutor: Alphonse Makacha. Makokha?
Witness 1: Yes my lord!
Prosecutor: What do you do for a living?
Witness 1:
I am a contractor my lord and live in Narok.
Prosecutor: Narok?
Witness 1:
Yes!
Prosecutor: What do you do in Narok?
Witness 1:
I had a shop where I used to sell my lord.
Prosecutor: So, you are a business person in Narok?
Witness 1:
Yes!
Prosecutor: Could you tell explain to the court what happened between 11am to 2pm?
Witness 1:
Yes! I remember my lord.
Prosecutor: What happened at Narok Stadium?
Witness 1: On that day my lord, there was this politician… there was a political rally on that day my
lord. Politicians came to talk to people that… when the time for this politician, who I know very well,
came, he did so.
Prosecutor: What did he say?
Witness 1: He said, “If you don`t vote for me this time round because you did not vote for me last
time…
Prosecutor: Referring to the visitors?
Witness 1: Exactly! Mkhole shina (luhya language meaning, what should you), leave my lord!
Prosecutor: What!
Witness 1: Leave for good. No one should be seen here no matter what. So, if you don`t vote, all of you
should go away my lord.
Prosecutor: If you don`t vote for me?
Witness 1: Yes!
Prosecutor: He asked you to move?
Witness 1:
Yes!
Prosecutor: And after the speech, what transpired?
Witness 1: My lord, that evening the youths immediately started saying, “E-e-e-e-e-e!” Others with
machetes, singing, knives…razors and other dangerous weapons.
Prosecutor: What were they saying?
Witness 1: To move if you did not vote!
Prosecutor: Who was he referring to, to move? The visitors or…
Witness 1: Visitors my lord; to move and go away!
Prosecutor: What did they do after that?
Witness 1: My lord, they burnt down my shop, my invaluable maize plantation. I even asked myself
what we had done wrong.
Prosecutor: So, what you are trying to say is that after the speech, there was?
Witness 1: Of course!
Prosecutor: And visitors chased away?
Witness 1: Yes! You would think of it being genocide my lord! It was bad!
Prosecutor: How things were in Narok?
Witness 1: It was no joke!
Prosecutor: Do you know the person who said that?
Witness 1: Yes! I can even bring him out right now!
Prosecutor: Where is he?
Witness 1: There he is!
Prosecutor: A politician?
Witness 1: Yes! He is even shameless!
Judge: So, you had gone to Narok for business purpose; you don`t belong there.
Witness 1: Okay, I have lived there for 20 good years!
Prosecutor: 20 years?
Witness 1: Yes! I am very much surprised…
Judge: The accused, do you have any questions to the witness?
Accused 1: Yes!
Judge: Ask!
Accused 1: You said that I incited, right?
Witness 1: Yes!
Accused 1: Did I incite you?
Witness 1: You did not incite but according to how you were talking.
Accused 1: What did I say?
Witness 1: Do you mean that I don`t know you!
Accused 1: What did I say? Just repeat how I said!
Witness 1: You said it in your mother tongue.
Accused 1: If you understood what I said, please say.
Witness 1: Should I say? (Pretending to speak in respondent’s language)
Judge: Hey! Which kind of language are you using?
Prosecutor: Do you mean that he used his language for the youth to start the violence?
Witness 1: Yes! It means that they should burn and…
Accused 1: If you speak that way, it means that you are the one who incited. There`s no such language.
You incited yourself, went to burn your shop, and left on your own.
Judge: If I may ask sir., do you understand the language that he has just spoken in?
Accused 1: There`s nothing like that. You can see that he is inciting himself.
Judge: Even the word soba (Maasai greeting) you mean you don`t know yet I have heard it severally!
Accused 1: Soba is a greeting. Is the same us saying, how are you? The rest that he said is…
Witness 1:
And… (Pretending to speak in Maasai and mixture of Luhya)
Judge: Hey! Any more questions?
Accused 1: I don`t have.
Judge: Another witness?
Prosecutor: You said that it was after his speech that the youths started destroying and burning property?
Witness 1:
Exactly!
Prosecutor: Immediately he finished his speech.
Witness 1: When he was done with his speech the youth started chaos.
Prosecutor: Thank you very much gentleman!
Witness 1:
Am I a youth?
BREAK
Witness 2: I …(Inaudible) swear that, all the words that I will use before this court are true. Nothing
but the whole truth. Hep me God.
Accused: Who asked you that? You just came and started talking!
Prosecutor: Tell the court your full names.
Witness 2: My name is Corporal…(Inaudible).
Prosecutor: From which Police Station?
Witness 2: From Narok Police Station.
Prosecutor: Narok Police Station?
Witness 2: Yes, my lord.
Prosecutor: Where were you on 20th, between 11am and 2pm?
Witness 2: My lord I was in Narok Town.
Prosecutor: What happened between 3 and 4pm?
Witness 2: There was this Member of Parliament who had come to campaign in Narok Stadium.
Prosecutor: Explain how it was.
Witness 2: My lord there was a political rally and many youths had attended it. The rally went on well
until the vying Member of Parliament gave out his speech. That was when the violence started my Lord.
Prosecutor: What kind of speech was it?
Witness 2: He said that, there were people who did not belong to that place; who were not members of
his community. And that they did not vote for him in the past election. They must vote for him for them
to continue staying there. He said those people wanted to vote for his rival. Once he said that, the youths
stood up and started saying, our right! They asked for their property. There and then, they started torching
shops and wheat from the farm. Cattle too, were slashed. I started to wonder what cattle had to do with
votes!
Prosecutor: If I may ask you, is the person who did that, who you said is a politician present before this
court?
Witness 2: Yes, my lord, he is right over there.
Prosecutor: That`s all that I had my lord.
Judge: The accused, do you have any questions to the witness?
Accused: Yes! Are you a Kenya Police officer?
Witness 2: Yes Mr.!
Accused: In that meeting, between you and I, who came carrying a gun?
Witness 2: It`s my duty as a police officer to carry a gun.
Accused: When I had finished speaking, you fired in air. Why did you do that?
Witness 2: We did that so us to stop the youths from burning and looting property in Narok.
Accused: If I say that those bullets caused he burning of the shop, farm and another one landed on the
vehicle. Did I have bullets and gun with me?
Witness 2: The problem with you is that, you are asking questions and answering them yourself.
Another witness
Court Clerk: Lift up this bible and repeat.
Witness 3: Yes my lord.
Court Clerk: I Gideon Ondiek Nyungo Akuota,
Witness 3: I Gideon Ondiek Nyungo Akuota,
Court Clerk: I swear that,
Witness 3: I swear that,
Court Clerk: All the words I will say before this court,
Witness 3: All the words I will say before this court,
Court Clerk: Are true.
Witness 3: Are true.
Court Clerk: Nothing but the whole truth
Witness 3: Nothing but the whole truth
Court Clerk: Help me God!
Witness 3: Help me God! You were there and so my wheat burning.
Judge: Hey gentleman!
Prosecutor: You said your name is Gideon Ondiek, right?
Witness 3: My name is Gideon Ondiek Nyungo Akuota a renowned farmer in Nrok.
Prosecutor: In Narok!
Witness 3: I was a business person. I used to grow wheat in Narok. Actually I was a large scale farmer. I
had 5000 acres of land where I grew wheat. I had another land with a ranch. I have a dairy farm whereby I
sell milk my lord. I also had a shop in Narok, wholesales, lorries for transportation of sand for sale. I was
reduced to a pauper in one day.
Prosecutor: What happened on 20th, Sir?
Witness 3: On that day, there was a political rally at Narok Stadium. This stadium that has been
neglected but still they went there. You could hear everything from far; from your shop or your business
place, you could hear them speak. The vying councilor spoke. I guess this is now called County
Representative. He spoke very well. Women Representative spoke as well. Then the vying MP,
Alexander spoke. He has been vying since `92 without any success. So, when he stood up, he started
telling people, “I know those who don`t want to vote for me; those visitors who have big businesses,
wheat farm, lots of grade cows. I now know that they don`t have my interest at their hearts”. He started
using words to show youths… he has his own youths who had come, that these people were enemies and
therefore deserved to leave. Anyone who could not vote for him, he could be able to tell by looking at
them…
Prosecutor: 2013?
Witness 3: Yes, 2013, they must go. My lord after the rally, Narok was chaotic. …(Inaudible) little by
little they started looting from shops, my lorries were burnt, they come to me as I was running to avoid
being cut, because they wanted to cut me into pieces. My lord if you saw me running you wouldn’t
believe that I had stomach upset.
Witness 3: Yes! That time. 5000 acres of wheat (pretends to cry)!
Prosecutor: Hey Sir!
Witness 3: Mamayo! Mamayo! (Crying)
Prosecutor: I am very sorry, Sir!
Judge: Should we give you 10 minutes to cry?
Witness 3: No! Just thinking of what took place.
Prosecutor: So, you mean the parliamentary aspirant was the one who gave out the inciting speech?
Witness 3: The fire burnt down my farm, other people`s, including those of his own tribe.
Prosecutor: You remember very well that such kinds of utterances are the ones that brought this county
to her knees in 2007/2008.
Witness 3: Of course! That is what causes the problem. You know…
Prosecutor: Where is that person that incited?
Witness 3: Here he is! I have been telling him since 1992. He failed
Accused: Did I set fire on your farm?
Witness 3: You are the one who incited the youths.
Accused: Did you see me lighting the fire?
Witness 3: You used the tongue and as you know, a tongue is a small organ but very poisonous. I am
imagining , 5000 acres of wheat, and even slashing my cows.
Accused: That` s all from our news room.
Judge: Which news room?
Accused: I have no further questions
Witness 3: Sorry!
Witness 3: Life became unbearable… that`s why you can see my coat looks as if I am carrying stones.
This is life. This is the one who did that… Hey you!
Judge: Hey! According to the witness the court has ruled that you have a case to answer. What is your
name?
Accused: My name is Alexander Josphat, HMB, CBH my lord.
Judge: Alexander Josphat.
Accused: (Trying to spell out his other names)
Judge: Is what you are trying to spell out on your ID?
Accused: If I find time I will start this job.
Judge: What do you do for a living?
Accused: Business though politics is no joke!
Judge: Do you live in Narok?
Accused: I used to live in Olokuto, then moved to Narok Town thinking…
Judge: If you haven`t won since `92 and 2007, how sure are you, you will win this time round! It seems
to me that people don`t want you. Mr. Prosecutor, do you have anything to say?
Prosecutor: You have defended yourself gentleman!
Judge: Okay, go on then.
Accused: I was hunting for votes the same way I did in the past. The only problem is that I did not
secure the seat. This time round I decided to use a different approach of telling people to move out so that
I would be voted for.
Judge: So it`s true you said that way?
Accused: But it`s politics. Then media misquoted me as usual. Because there was a time when the wind
was blowing, the media people took photos of me immediately. The photos were used as headline in the
papers. Now tell me if this is fair especially for those who don`t me to clinch to that seat as a in
parliament? I really apologize! I apologize for not taking into account the words I was using. I can
rephrase my words of telling people to move out by telling them to remain but vote for me.
Judge: Mr. Prosecutor, do you have anything to say?
Accused: No, he doesn`t have anything to say. He is done.
Judge: Hey shut up! I am not talking to you!
Prosecutor: My lord, the accused has been accused of inciting people to cause violence. After his speech
in Narok Stadium, there by then, youths started beating people, burning businesses, lands for those who
were said to be visitors. They were incited by the honorable member and thereby destroying people`s
property in Narok, my lord. My lord this has been normal especially at the electioneering period.
Politicians do incite citizens by telling them that there are those people who came to occupy their land.
My lord it`s very wrong as a politician to use inciting language. My lord, the prosecution is asking the
court to take stern action against the accused. This should serve as a lesson to those other politicians
expecting to campaign in 2013 my lord. That`s all I had.
Accused: That`s inciting Sir! This is politics. Why are you politicizing this issue?
Judge: Listen to me then!
Accused: I am listening to you.
Judge: The law under which you have been accused is the The Kenya National Cohesion and Integration
Act 2008 Section 13 (1a).
Accused: What is all that for…
Judge: It`s the law related to this case of yours.
Prosecutor: About inciting, hate speech, and bad speech.
Accused: What of hunting for votes?
Judge: No vote hunting. We are handling the case on inciting. You are supposed to know that it`s a crime
as per this case, you as the accused have been accused of using inciting words in a political rally. People
leave the place angry causing problems. People become poor, no homes, no food because it was all burnt
during the skirmishes. Listen, according to this case until the last minute, you confessed of having said
those words.
Accused: I did not say much.
Judge: You are supposed to know that no one in this country is stopped to live anywhere they so wish as
long as they don’t cause trouble and have your own property. You should not go telling people that those
do not belong here and they did not vote for me so, they should leave this place. Voting is voluntarily. I
can choose to vote for you or another person. You cannot force people to vote for you. That is very
wrong. If you say that you know those who did not vote for you last time ad that if they did not vote for
you this time round, they will have to leave, this is very direct that you were inciting. That`s why you so
people leaving the meeting very hungry and caused trouble everywhere. No matter what we do, we cannot
bring back whatever was lost. Even if you were asked to compensate the victims, you wouldn`t. Think of
5000 acres of wheat. Even cattle were slashed. What kind of a loss is this?
Accused: I did not ask them to do that!
Judge: You even have no shame to stand before this court saying, ‘it`s true I said that because I was
looking for votes and that that was politics! No way! That`s inciting. This court has found you guilty and
sentenced you for a three year jail term.
Accused: Three years! What about the campaign?
Judge: Listen! People should love each other, forgive and live together in peace as one community. Stop
saying that; mentioning and blaming tribes. Is that right? Live in peace and if you happen to speak, speak
love. With all this said and done, you get the votes you are looking for.
Accused: When I campaign?
Judge: Yes as long as you don`t incite. Let`s live as Kenyans.
Accused: 2013 is election year. If you counted well…
Judge: That`s better so that you don`t go inciting people. And we pray that people not to pay attention to
people of your kind.
Accused: Do you mean that I should incite people in jail?
Judge: If you do that, you will be in trouble.
Accused: Mother, I think you should have…
Judge: Don`t call me mother!
Prosecutor: Sir! Get out this person!
Judge: Do you understand!
Accused: I am begging you as a parent! Campaign! Hey!
END: {0:22: 32.6}