Missing Wajir MCA Yussuf Ahmed.
Update: Appearing in court Friday, DCIO Justus Imana denied that the police have the MCA in their custody.
Abducted Wajir Member of the County Assembly (MCA) Yusuf Hussein Ahmed was summoned by the County Security Committee days before his disappearance in Nairobi, his family revealed, as they demanded answers two weeks after he was kidnapped by people his relatives and lawyers believe were police officers.
Mr Ahmed, the Dela Ward MCA and Wajir Assembly Majority Whip, was abducted on the evening of September 13, 2024, and the High Court in Nairobi has since demanded that Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja appears before the court to explain his whereabouts two weeks after the shock disappearance.
His family told the Nation that after he was summoned by the County Security Committee, the ward representative attended the meeting with the security chiefs at the Wajir County commissioner’s office on August 8 at 10am.
A month later, he vanished without a trace. His family now believes the two events could be connected.
On the evening he vanished, unknown assailants intercepted the taxi he was in, grabbed him and left with him.
“Before his abduction, he had not expressed any fears for his life or had any confrontations with the police. But, on August 6, he received a letter from the Wajir security committee requiring him to attend to a meeting. He attended the meeting with the security chiefs at the Wajir County commissioner’s office on August 8 at 10am. He said on the letter inviting him for the security meeting, the agenda was security matters at the Riara area in Wajir. He did not divulge the details of the discussions,” the family told the Nation.
Mr Ahmed was born in the remote Anole area of Eldas constituency on January 25, 1994. He studied at Eldas Primary School and Griftu Secondary School.
And despite the hardship he faced, Mr Ahmed completed a diploma in business management at Frontier Institute of Professional Studies and later became a businessman, operating M-Pesa outlets and dealing in general merchandise.
Mr Ahmed then joined politics, becoming a rising political figure in Wajir.
His election to the County Assembly on a United Democratic Movement (UDM) ticket and being named Minority Whip was a sign of his growing influence.
And then, in an instant, everything changed.
On the evening of his abduction, Mr Ahmed was travelling in a taxi driven by Mr Wambua Kioko along Enterprise Road in Nairobi.
Two unmarked Land Cruiser Prados appeared on the road, blocking their path.
Armed men, faceless in the dim light, pulled Ahmed from the vehicle and bundled him into their car. The taxi driver was left in shock, his phone confiscated and his pleas drowned out by the terror of the moment.
Since then, silence has followed. Ahmed’s phone, dropped in the scuffle, is now in the hands of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
The assailants “confiscated the taxi driver’s phone and brandished their guns at him,” said Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo.
The matter was reported to the Industrial Area Police Station. The family found out about the abduction through the same police station, Ms Odhiambo said.
The family has lodged a formal report with the DCI at the Makadara Police Station.
“However, no information of his (Ahmed’s) whereabouts has been forthcoming, and the family remains in total uncertainty and anxiety,” said LSK president.
Hours have turned into agonising days as the family waits for news on Mr Ahmed and his return.
Ahmed’s family, like other families whose relatives have disappeared, is left searching for answers and praying for justice.
In light of recent abductions in the country, the family is concerned about possible foul play in Mr Ahmed's untimely disappearance, the LSK said.
“We add our voice to the concerns that have been raised over this situation and call on the @IG_NPS and the @DCI_Kenya to treat this matter with urgency and take all steps necessary to establish the truth behind this abduction and secure the safe return of Mr Ahmed,” posted the LSK president on X.
“Human rights are imperative safeguards of a safe and stable society, and any threats thereto must be counteracted by all means necessary. We invite members of the public to remain vigilant in protecting one another and to come forward with any information on the possible whereabouts of Mr Ahmed.”
On Thursday, the High Court judge Alexander Muteti ordered IG Kanja to produce Mr Ahmed. In the event he is not produced, the judge said both IG Kanja and the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Mohamed Amin should appear in court to shed light on the MCA’s whereabouts.
The High Court also ordered Attorney-General Dorcas Oduor to send a representative with an explanation as to what the government is doing with regards to the abduction.
During a virtual hearing on Thursday, Justice Muteti enjoined the LSK and human rights lobby Haki Africa in the case filed by lawyers Danstan Omari, Samson Nyaberi and Shadrack Wambui for the family of the abductee.
Justice Muteti said the case filed by the family is of great public interest as “15 days are gone and his whereabouts are not known.” He also said the issue is emotive and causing the family anxiety.
The hearing continues.
