[Jambo] Miguna Miguna Reaction About The recent Attack Of His Reputation

Dear Sirs / Madams,

I hope that you are enjoying your Easter.

We spent it here in Toronto celebrating the life of Rispah Adala, who was murdered two weeks ago. It was so tragic and sad.

Having said that, I have read something posted on both Jaluo.com and Jambo/Publiceye boards by a person calling himself "Achuth Oracha, Nyando-District."

I am not sure if this is the same "Achuth Oracha" of New Jersey who has previously published scandalous things about Hon. Raila Odinga's presidential campaign. But that is beside the point.

I am a strong believer in both freedom of speech and expression. I also believe that people have the right to discuss issues vigorously.

However, there is a big difference between freedom of speech and religion and defamation or libel.

Where one falsely makes accusations or allegations against another and then disseminates those false allegations to third parties thereby causing injury to the attacked person's standing in the community, his reputation and good name, it goes beyond freedom and loses legal protection. It becomes libel, slander and defamation and attracts legal censure.

Someone's freedom ends is where my freedom begins. As such, each one of us must be careful to guard against slander, libel and defamation.

The post published in Jaluo.com with the title: "Nyando Christian Voters Rejects Miguna Miguna's Huminist Agenda as Fred Waga star rises in Diaspora" [sic], is libelous and defamatory.

It falsely allege that I don't believe in God or "supernatural concepts". It also falsely claim that I have called the purported campaign to exhume the remains of one Melkio Ondeto and have them reburied in Kano as "silliness." It further alleges that I deny the "existence of God, Christ and the Bible" and insinuates that I believe that each individual is allowed to substitute God's moral standard by our own individual ones.

The foregoing are just but a few of the scandalous allegations made against me in both Jaluo.com and Jambo/Publiceye.

Non one has ever asked my opinion about the purported attempt to rebury Ondeto's remains. In fact, this is the first time I am hearing about such a thing. But for this news from the defamatory publication, I never knew where Ondeto had been buried.

Hence, to claim, as has been done on both Jaluo.com and Jambo/Publiceye, that I called that purported "campaign" to "return Ondeto's remains" silliness, is not just false, it is astoundingly malicious.

As a rule, I do not comment on anybody's campaign.

The only exceptions - and you have all read my written comments on them- are: _Ordinary Kenyans vs a few oligarchs_. The second is _freedom vs. repression and oppression_. The third is _ODM-K vs. Narc-K, or ODM-K against any other political party_. And the fourth exception is _Raila Odinga vs. Kibaki_, or _Raila Odinga vs. any other individual politician in Kenya_. I make no apologies for taking strong positions on those issues.

The allegations made about me in Jaluo.com and also published in Jambo /Public Eye boards are are false, vexatious and scandalous. They are made maliciously with the express intention of causing injury to my reputation, good name and standing in the community.

These false and defamatory allegations do not constitute "discourse," "discussion," or "debate" on any issues regarding Nyando, Nyanza, Kenya, Africa or the world. These false attacks should have no place on any discussion board.

This is the second time that I am being falsely attacked on Jaluo.com for absolutely no reason at all.

I would have had no problem if someone, even if cowardly enough to use a factious name, were to discuss relevant issues about Nyando, Kano, Nyanza, Kenya, Africa, the world, humanism, or even about Miguna Miguna. However, what has happened is that some cowardly and malicious people are using Jaluo.com and Jambo/Publiceye to launch personal, unfounded and libellous attacks on me, knowing very well that their claims are all manufactured.

I therefore request you (Jaluo.com and Jambo/Publiceye) either to delete the entire post(s) in question, or to excise those portions that make the false and defamatory claims against me.

Nyando voters will not cast votes in the Internet. Nor will they vote based on spurious defamatory claims such as the ones complained of. I wonder why anyone would be bothered by me if Nyando voters have already "rejected" me as alleged. The question that needs to be asked is this: "If Miguna Miguna has been rejected by Christian Nyando voters as claimed, why bother about him?"

Anybody genuinely interested in the economic, social, cultural and political development of our people (as people from Nyando, Kano, Nyanza, Kenya or Africa) would pay no attention to me, personally, especially if I am a political non-starter as claimed. Our commitments, energies and resources, including time are better spent confronting the major problems facing our people.

Attacking me or anybody else in the Internet will not address the myriads of problems our people face on a daily basis. Cheap, false and defamatory attacks will not improve our standards of living; they will never address our infrastructural backwardness; it will never address our economic woes; it will never eradicate floods and flooding; it will never eradicate or reduce HIV/Aids' infections or other preventable diseases from ravaging our people. Indeed, these attacks represent why our condition is so dire and requires urgent attention.

I am prepared to work with anyone genuinely interested in addressing our people's problems. I am not going to do that by unfairly attacking my political opponents. My political opponents are not my enemies; they are simply my competitors. It is our respective visions that will and ought to distinguish me from my political opponents; not the amount of vitriol I can spew.

I intend to conduct an issue based campaign. I will not attack my political opponents unfairly. I shall never falsely accuse any of them of anything. So, whoever thought that they could provoke me to make intemperate claims about the current MP or other aspirants, please think again. I am way above those petty substandard.

In fact, it is attitudes and tendencies like the one exhibited in the defamatory publication that ought to be eradicated in Kenyan politics.

Feel free to give CONSTRUCTIVE feedback through my official website: ( http://www.migunamiguna.com/ )

Enjoy your Easter Holidays and may God/Nyasaye Bless all of you.

Sincerely yours,

Miguna
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Miguna Miguna
Barrister & Solicitor
8 Bonnington Place
Toronto, Ontario M2N 4V1
Tel 416-512-7999
Fax (416) 223-7430