Democratic Party (DP) leader Justin Muturi
Democratic Party (DP) leader Justin Muturi has called for the immediate establishment of an International Criminal Court (ICC) outreach office in Nairobi, warning that what he described as rising ethnic rhetoric could heighten tensions ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Speaking during a meet-the-people tour in Othaya, Nyeri County, Sunday, Muturi said political messages that invoke memories of the 2007–08 post-election violence could create fear and intimidate communities, particularly in the Mt Kenya region.
He urged political leaders to avoid using ethnicity and painful memories of past violence as tools for influencing political participation.
“No Kenyan community should be threatened, collectively targeted, or frightened out of exercising its constitutional right to vote,” Muturi said.
Muturi said his United Alternative Government was pushing for an ICC outreach office in Nairobi as a preventive measure to strengthen early engagement, documentation, and preservation of evidence.
He argued that such an office would give victims, witnesses, civil society organisations and institutions a channel to raise concerns and have information relating to conduct within the ICC’s jurisdiction preserved and assessed.
Muturi warned that inflammatory political rhetoric could escalate into organised mobilisation and violence if not addressed early.
“The objective is to intervene while rhetoric is still rhetoric—before it becomes mobilisation, mobilisation becomes violence, and violence becomes mass atrocity,” he said.
He also urged politicians to exercise restraint, saying political power should not be treated as protection from accountability.
“Do not weaponise ethnicity, do not manufacture fear, and do not imagine that political power places anyone beyond accountability,” Muturi said.
The DP leader said Kenya should learn from the 2007–08 post-election violence by responding to early warning signs before they escalate.
“Kenya belongs to every Kenyan, and the right to participate freely in our democracy must never again be secured only after blood has been shed,” he said.
