This article is a follow-up to a posting published on the Kenya Forum on 18 February entitled ‘Dr Robert Ouko’s murder: Questions and answers’ which in turn referred to an article published in the Standard’s newspaper under the headline ‘Why these questions must be answered in solving mystery of Ouko murder’ (February 16).

‘This could be significant: a Kenyan newspaper has actually published some of the truths surrounding the murder of Dr Robert Ouko and raised interesting questions that in the past have been suppressed’ we wrote.

This too could be significant: the Forum has received the following from a reader who spotted a news report published in The Kenya Times on March 18, 2005, buried deep in the Internet.

Gor Sungu: The Edwin Mutai report in the Kenya Times

The report, ‘Moroto wants Sungu probed over Ouko death’ (since deleted), was written by an Edwin Mutai who we believe is now a ‘parliamentary reporter’ with the Nation Media Group. In it, Mutai reported that Samuel Moroto MP (now MP for Kapenguria) who served on the Parliamentary Select Committee (2004-05) that was supposed to impartially investigate Dr Robert Ouko’s murder that took place on February 13, 1990, had argued that Committee’s chairman should himself be investigated about what he knew regarding Ouko’s murder.

The Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee was none other than Gor Sungu, then an MP (Kisumu Town East). The Kenya Forum had not seen Mutai’s report before but we have written about Gor Sunguh – see ‘Gor Sunguh owes more than Sh3 million and an apology to Oraro over Ouko inquiry’(17 July, 2011).

Gor Sungu: connected to one of Robert Ouko’s political rivals?

The British Scotland Yard detective John Troon in his ‘Final Report’ had asked for further investigations into Joab Omino who had been Dr Ouko’s opponent in Kisumu Town constituency in the 1988 elections, an acrimonious election that Ouko only won narrowly.

Moroto alleged that Gor Sunguh, the impartial chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee, had been Dr Ouko’s ‘chief campaign manager’ and then swapped sides to support Joab Omino and challenged Sunguh to ‘come clean on the real killers of the late minister’.

Samuel Moroto wants Gor Sungu proved over Ouko death

Edwin Mutai, Kenya Times, March 18, 2005

A MEMBER of the committee investigating the 1990 murder of Foreign Affairs minister Dr. Robert Ouko has dismissed the committee’s report recently hurriedly pieced together in Mombasa as “total rubbish” tailored to fix former President Daniel arap Moi and Nicholas Biwott.

Samuel Moroto, at the same time, challenged committee chairman Gor Sungu to declare why he refused to be investigated in connection with the Ouko murder following revelations that he served as the campaign manager to the late minister during the 1988 General Election and later switched to his political rival, the late Joab Omino under unclear circumstances.

Moroto claimed that he differed with Sungu during the writing of the report in Mombasa when he proposed that he (Sungu) be investigated over the circumstances leading to his abrupt change of alliance to Omino in the 1988 campaigns. The Kisumu Town East MP had previously been Dr. Ouko’s chief campaign manager and pointman.

“We need to investigate Sungu. This is what I told the committee in Kilifi and I asked Sungu to tell us more of what he knew since he was campaigning for Ouko”, revealed Moroto.

When contacted, Sungu refused to be drawn into the war of words with Moroto and claimed that some powerful individuals implicated in the murder of the late Ouko were out to kill the committee report.

But Moroto rubbished allegations by Sungu that he flew to Nairobi to consult Kanu MPs who later bribed him to cause chaos in the committee which was then compiling its final report at a Kilifi hotel.

And Moroto accused his committee colleague Kiema Kilonzo for allegedly following Sungu blindly with little or no idea of the politics behind Dr. Ouko’s death in Kisumu.

Moroto charged that nothing meaningful will come from the committee since some of its members had their minds firmly fixed on incriminating Messrs Moi and Biwott on allegations based on hearsay.

Speaking at Parliament Buildings for the first time since he was involved in a bitter verbal exchange with Sungu at the Sun and Sand Resort in Kilifi last weekend, Moroto said their differences arose after Sungu shot down suggestions to trace the murder of Dr Ouko back to 1988 according to Mr Troon’s recommendations.

“Troon told us to go back to 1988 and specifically investigate Selina Were, sentries who guarded the late minister’s home and the farm manager. The report given to us by Troon and Brinner were all based on hearsay since nobody claimed he saw what happened but based their testimonies on media reports”, he said.

He added, “Troon himself said in London that Kenyans are funny. All people he interviewed gave him different versions based on hearsay. He said they were unbelievable and this is what I stated to the committee to remind them of the need to start investigations from 1988.”

Moroto also revealed that he disagreed with Sungu and the committee’s verdicts that claimed that Dr Ouko was driven to Nakuru State Lodge and killed there before his body being dumped at Got Alila near his Koru home within a span of one hour.

“We also disagreed here. What I saw from one or two of our members is that they wanted Moi and Biwott to be fixed by these theories. These are areas we differed over and I tell you, the final report is a total mess and nothing will come out of it. If somebody is rushing to accuse Mr Moi and Biwott with the motive of fixing them and leaving themselves from investigations, then this is not a report. It is sad we have squandered millions of taxpayers money and the real killers of Dr. Ouko have not been unearthed”, he charged.

Moroto dismissed claims that he was bribed in Nairobi by Kanu personalities as blatant lies noting that he sought permission from the committee to attend the burial of the late Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Chemorei on the invitation of Mt. Elgon MP John Serut. Chemorei was recently gunned down by police in Kitale.

“Serut, who was present during Moroto’s briefing” said the MP joined him in condoling the family and sending off SSP Chemorei and dismissed the allegations of compromise as diversionary.

Moroto challenged Sunguh to tell Kenyans what he knows about Ouko’s tribulations during the 1988 campaigns and come clean on the real killers of the late minister.