#FreeNgirachu:
Arrested Journalist tops Twitter trends
“Were it left to me to decide
whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a
government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter”.-Thomas
Jefferson, 3rd President of the
United States
A senior reporter has been arrested over a story
he did regarding interior ministry spending.
By
MUSYOKA NGUI
The Nation’s
parliamentary editor John Ngirachu was arrested at the precincts of the
National Assembly for exposing procurement expenditure incurred by the Ministry
of Interior and Coordination of National Government.
 |
| A journalist protests against infringed media freedom. Photo/The Guardian |
Interior Cabinet Secretary Major General (Rtd)
Joseph Nkaiserry said that the respected reporter will be released after
revealing the names of the sources of his story. Journalists are ethically entitled
to guard the identities of confidential sources and blowing off the cover may
expose the sources to danger including injury and death. Others may have to bear
with condemnation and reprimanding from their seniors and colleagues.
Nation Media Group which owns the Daily Nation is the largest media stable
in the entire East and Central Africa.
Nkaiserry reacted to the expose by the editor
saying that it could jeopardize national security. He added that his ministry officials
had presented information to the Public Accounts Committee of the August House
in camera as per the law.
On the other hand, the public the right to know.
The arrest presents a controversy over freedom of the media and the right of
the public to demand accountability from their leaders on the one hand and the right
of the secret code for the government to conceal confidential information for
the preservation of national security. The primary mandate of any government is
to protect its citizens.
On Twitter, Kenyans have expressed mixed
reactions regarding the arrest of the journalist. #FreeNgirachu is trending right
now on top of Nairobi Trends.
The arrest comes days in the wake of increased
scrutiny of government spending in the Planning and Devolution ministry which
has put Jubilee Government’s commitment to fighting corruption under the
microscope.
A quick review of the #Free Ngirachu tweets is
here.
Hannintgon Otieno Retweeted The Standard
Digital
Looks like Jubilee don't need votes
from media sector too. Puking on everyones shoes they R @gathara #FreeNgirachu
Retweeted Nanjira (@NiNanjira): So yeah, #FreeNgirachu,
but once he's free, let's not lose the momentum.
Nkaissery should not crush down our
mirrors @dailynation #FreeNgirachu
Journalism is printing what someone
else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations.- George
Orwell. #FreeNgirachu
What rubbish!Are the sources y'll are
demanding from @JohnNgirachu
a threat to national security? #FreeNgirachu
@HonKaniniKega @InteriorKE you need to know media is interested in revenue
generation by cooking false stories for pple to buy their papers. As
a PAC member I am disturbed by the gross misrepresentation of facts by the the
media on the spending of 3.8B by @InteriorKE.
Be the judge. Read the full story by
clicking the link below and keep the conversation going:
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