A former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) military leader, who has been acquitted by the International Criminal Court ( ICC), failed in his quest to get asylum in Kenya.
High Court Judge Mumbi Ngugi heard that the man, who claims to have incriminating evidence against DRC President Joseph Kabila, and other powerful State officials, has since gone missing and his whereabouts remain unknown.
Mathew Ngudjolo Chui through his Lawyer Gershom Otachi filed for asylum last week before High Court Judge Weldon Korir, who failed to rule in his favour.
The matter was then placed before Justice Ngugi’s court for direction, where she ruled that the matter be mentioned on May 13. Last Friday, Justice Korir declined to grant Chui asylum saying that the court lacked sufficient information to rule in his favour.
“In my view, by entering a transit zone he cannot be said to have entered Kenya, he is not a Kenyan citizen and having not entered he cannot benefit from the protection of Kenyan laws,” Korir said.
He further ruled that the asylum seeker is under the escort of officers from a foreign country and it would be inappropriate to interrupt the programmes of other States concerning a subject who is not Kenyan.
Chui was to be escorted back to DRC after his acquittal by The Hague based court but he sought the intervention of the Kenyan courts as he would have to make a stop over here.
On Thursday, Mr Otachi told Ngugi that his client’s whereabouts are unknown as when the suit was filed last week, he was known to be in the Netherlands. Chui was acquitted by the ICC in December 2012. Chui was to be returned to his motherland on May 1 but there was no direct flight so he was to use a connecting flight from Nairobi.
He was to remain in Kenya for six hours before he could board his flight to Congo.
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