Aoko Otieno’s aide raises alarm over her whereabouts

By Peter Ochieng

Blogger Aoko Otieno’s aide has raised an alarm over her possible disappearance.

The blogger whose timeline is Maverick Aoko on X has not posted anything since October 22, leading her followers into panic mode.

With the hashtag 'Where is Aoko’ trending on X, her aide, using Aoko’s account, released the following statement a while ago.

“Hi, this is Aoko’s aide. I'm tweeting using her account with the blessings of her dad. After her arrest, she opted to stay with family upcountry only going to Nairobi for meetings and Court. Two weeks ago, upon her return to Nairobi, she found her main door clobbered at the hinges. She called me panicked.”

“I asked her to take pictures and leave. She decided not to say it to prevent drawing attention that she was around. Her caretaker and watchman also reported of strange men hovering around, asking of her whereabouts.”

“Days later, she was interviewed by AFP about her arrest ordeal and continued threats. After her tweet on Mr. "F”, she went incognito, which we (family friends) thought was normal, perhaps she just wanted to confuse enemies. We still don’t know her whereabouts. Whom do we report to? Same police who told her lawyers point-blank, "we are coming for her."

"If they took her, we're asking that they produce her. If she is hiding, we pray that she is safe and will reach out in whatever discreet way just so we can all have peace of mind.”

Aoko’s posts on social media targeting the top brass in President William Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza administration have previously landed her in court.

She was arrested on August 16, before being charged three days later for false information under Section 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act No. 5 of 2018, cyber harassment under Section 27, and fraudulent use of electronic data under Section 38 of the same act.

According to the charge sheet, Aoko had shared defamatory information about Beth Wambui Mbuitu on her X account. She was released on bail.

Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino has also raised an alarm over her whereabouts.