Wajir County Assembly Minority Leader Yussuf Ahmed Hussein, who went missing in the capital Nairobi nearly six months ago, was abducted and held in the same torture chambers where the Kitengela Three activists were detained, the Nation can reveal.
"He returned home Saturday night holding a Quran. His wife called us immediately, and we confirmed it was him," Mr Elyas Abdille, Mr Hussein’s cousin told the Nation on Sunday.
It was not immediately clear where the MCA was since his disappearance on September 13, 2024, and how he found his way home but reports indicate he was taken to Eastleigh by unknown people, suspected to be his abductors.
“He told us he was being held with many other people within Nairobi for the first two months but was moved to a place he didn't know. We are yet to establish who dropped him in Eastleigh last evening because he came in the house alone," said Mr Abdille.
From left: Longton Jamil, his younger brother Aslam Longton and activist Bob Njagi who abducted in Kitengela and released after 32 days in captivity.
Photo credit: Pool
“He only told us that he was held next to Bob Njagi. He was in a separate room but he could hear Njagi screaming,” the source said.
Mr Hussein’s abduction happened on September 13 on Enterprise Road in Industrial Area, coming almost one month after Mr Njagi and the Longton brothers were kidnapped.
The MCA’s assertion appears to corroborate Mr Njagi’s earlier claim that they were in the same torture chambers.
While appearing at JKLive show on February 6, Mr Njagi claimed that the MCA was dead following the torture that he heard him being afflicted to by captors.
Leader of Free Kenya Movement Bob Njagi addresses journalists in Kitengela on October 9, 2024.
Photo credit: Billy Ogada | Nation Media Group
“We may laugh about this matter sometimes but I want to say here that the MCA for Wajir County who was found murdered was actually in the room next to where I was. I had the opportunity of peeping through the keyhole and I saw him,” Mr Njagi said.
Upon his release on Saturday evening, the abductors, suspected to be Kenyan security agencies, handed the MCA Sh5,000 fare to facilitate his return to Eastleigh.
“They dropped him at Pangani shopping centre around 9.30 pm and gave him five thousand shillings. He did not see those who released him because they had threatened him if he could have dared to look back.”
While Kitengela activists were held for 32 days, Wajir MCA has been missing for 56 days, raising suspicion from the family members and the leaders over the intention of his abductors.
His release has elicited mixed reactions from the family members and the elected leaders who have expressed their displeasure in the manner in which the MCA was maltreated.
Eldas MP Adan Keynan, a relative of the MCA, said that they were grateful that their kin was found alive even as he condemned the abduction and called for investigations.
Mandera Senator Ali Roba, who is also the party leader of United Democratic Movement (UDA) which sponsored Dela MCA, said that the MCA’s health is worrying, indicating that he must have undergone a lot of torture.
“The ones who dropped him back and the ones who picked him up from the streets six months ago are believed to be State agencies and if anybody is suspected of any wrongdoing, there is no harm in processing the individual in line with the rule of law and producing him in court,” Mr Roba said.
Wajir Governor and Chairperson of the Council of Governors (CoG) Ahmed Abdullahi on Sunday expressed his relief at the finding of the ward representative.
“Alhamdulillah! I am happy to have received the good news of Hon. Yussuf Hussein’s safe return and reunion with his family after months of uncertainty. Since his disappearance in September last year, the people of Wajir have endured a painful period of anxiety, prayers, and unwavering hope for his safe return,” he said in a tweet.
“The news of his reunion brings immense relief and joy to our community. It is a moment of gratitude and renewed hope for his family and all those who stood by them during these difficult times. On behalf of the people of Wajir County, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who played a role in ensuring his safe return. May this moment mark the beginning of healing, peace, and renewed strength for him and his loved ones.”
“No words but to say Alhamdullilah! Welcome hon me our MCA Hon Yussuf Tolfiyow,” she tweeted on Sunday.
The leaders have also asked the government, following the deal between ODM of Raila Odinga and the ruling party, to ensure that no other Kenyan is kidnapped for whatever reasons.
“I don’t know why the release was done four days to the six-month statutory period. Time will in for, and am sure that in the next briefing, we will have critical information that will enlighten some of the things further,” Mr Keynan said.
Mr Hussein went missing in Nairobi on the night of September 13, 2024, on Enterprise Road while heading to his home in Pangani from South C.
Reports indicated that the lawmaker was waylaid by unknown gunmen as he was being driven home by a hired taxi.
The gunmen blocked the taxi before ordering Mr Hussein out and bundling him into their car never to be seen again.
Frantic efforts by his family and activists to find him bore no fruit as police denied knowledge of his whereabouts.
In October 2024, a body was retrieved in Lake Yahud, which was believed to be the missing ward rep.
Family members and locals thronged the morgue to identify the body that was badly tortured and decomposed, but two independent DNA tests later determined that the body was not that of the MCA.
