Kenyas youngest MP accused of assaulting man

Kenya’s youngest Member of Parliament John Paul Mwirigi is in trouble. The legislator has been accused of physically assaulting a man who allegedly led a demonstration over the poor state of a key road in his constituency on Friday, last week.

According to the alleged victim, John Gikunda alias Wanugu, the 24-year-old lawmaker manhandled him and squeezed his neck in public on Sunday accusing him of having a private agenda to tarnish his name.

“Yesterday as I was going home from church I met with several vehicles and one of them, a Range Rover, stopped and I saw the MP. He called me and asked why we were demonstrating without addressing him first. I told him we are suffering because of this poor road. He got angry and accused me that I’m leading a war against him. It is then that he got out of the car, charged at him and held me by the neck,” recalled Gikunda.

“Lucky enough as we were speaking, a crowd had gathered to see mheshimiwa. So the locals intervened and that is when the MP let me go.”

Mr. Mwirigi has denied the assault claims, saying Wanugu intends to taint his name.

“I never tried or attempted to throttle Wanugu and the allegations he’s making against me are meant to taint my name in bad light, I cannot engage myself in such kind of politics he want to drag me into,” he said. “Let the law take its cause for the truth to be known.”

Gikunda says he is now living in fear, adding that he intends to report the matter to the police.

“I am really fearing for my life right now because I have never seen such a thing where an MP is beating someone who voted for him,” he added.

The residents were complaining over the road connecting Maua-Athiru Gaiti and Meru National Park which has been rendered impassible.

Mwirigi had promised to visit the area on Sunday and address the concerns by the locals.

The locals have, however, given the legislator a two-week ultimatum to apologise over the incident, failure to which they will hold a demonstration against him.

Mwirigi, who vied as an independent candidate, clinched the Igembe South parliamentary seat after garnering 18, 867 against Jubilee’s Rufus Miriti, who had 15, 411 votes.