Blogger and digital activist Emmanuel Maleve has reportedly been abducted in Kitui town under alarming circumstances.
According to eyewitnesses, Maleve was seized at Muli Mall in Kitui town by unidentified individuals using a Land Cruiser, license plate KCQ 184U. Officers the Kitui Central Police Station have since refused to register the incident and denied having him in custody. His mobile phone has since remained switched off.
His close friends and relatives have linked his disappearance after an article he authored, published on HopkinDigital.com, in which he alleged that Kitui South MP, Dr. Rachael Kaki Nyamai, was at the center of a KSh 26.7 million bursary scandal.
In the exposé, Maleve detailed how funds meant for vulnerable students in Kitui were allegedly misappropriated under the MP’s leadership, and accused her of running a patronage network through the Constituency Development Fund (CDF).
The article, titled “EXPOSÉ: MP Kaki Nyamai at the Center of Kshs 26.7 Million Bursary Scandal”, accuses Nyamai of facilitating the irregular disbursement of bursary cheques, some of which were allegedly paid to ghost beneficiaries or politically connected individuals. In the piece, Maleve referred to Nyamai as the “Queen of Corruption,”
Maleve’s colleagues believe his abduction is a targeted attempt to silence and intimidate whistleblowers and independent media voices in the region. The silence and inaction by police have only fueled speculation about state complicity or deliberate cover-up.
As of now, there has been no official acknowledgment or statement from either MP Nyamai or local law enforcement regarding Maleve’s abduction.