Starehe MP Charles ‘Jaguar’ Njagua will spend three more days at Kileleshwa Police Station after the court allowed the prosecution to continue holding the legislator to allow the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) complete investigations into the matter.
Senior Resident magistrate Tobiko Sinkiyan however declined to grant the proseution’s original request to hold the MP for fourteen days.
The magistrate observed that the prosecution had not substantiated its argument that Njagua’s prominence in society was likely to put him in a position to interfere with investigations but did not rule out the possibility of that happening.
Njagua was charged with making inciting and inflammatory remarks about foreign traders working in the country.
Jaguar was arrested on Wednesday outside parliament buildings after he threatened to mobilise his constituents to expel Chinese, Ugandan and Tanzanian traders over claims that they were driving locals out of business.
{Read: Starehe MP Jaguar caged amid Kenya, Tanzania fallout}
“If you walk around our markets, Ugandans and Tanzanians have taken over our businesses and pushed our people to the periphery. We are saying enough is enough. If a 24-hour ultimatum is not enough for them to be deported, we will remove them and we’ll beat them up and without any apologies,” said Njagua.
The comments caused a diplomatic storm with Kenyan High Commissioner Dan Kazungu being summoned to explain the government’s official position on the matter after Tanzania’s Speaker of Parliament Job Ndugai ordered his government to issue a statement on the safety of Tanzanians in Kenya.
{See also: DCI cracks down on alleged Kenya Power billing fraud}
Kenya distanced itself from Njagua’s remarks saying that the country encourages foreigners to do business in the country.
