Turkish in Ruto’s aborted Uganda trip detained in Nairobi by security officials » Capital News

NAIROBI, Kenya Aug 7 – Turkish businessman Harun Aydin who was in Deputy President William Ruto’s aborted trip to Uganda was detained by security officials Saturday when he flew back to Nairobi.

Security sources confirmed that Aydin was detained on landing at the Wilson Airport and was being questioned. There was no immediate reason given but there were reports that he is a person of interest to the Kenyan government.

“He is being questioned, that is all I can say for now,” a security official said.

Aydin was listed as part of the entourage of DP Ruto to Uganda on Monday when the second in command was blocked from traveling for lack of clearance from his boss President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Ruto has protested the decision to stop him from traveling, accusing the Interior Ministry of orchestrating his frustrations despite his position in government insisting he requires no clearance to travel anywhere.

“I have been a Deputy President for 9 years and I have traveled to many places,” he said, “I have never been asked to produce clearance.”

But Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho has denied the claims, saying his ministry was not involved in stopping Ruto, but confirmed that the DP requires clearance to travel.

On the day Ruto was blocked, he was scheduled to travel alongside the Turkish, Eric Ruto, David Langat, Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro, Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi, Kinango MP, Benjamin Tayari and Elijah Rono. All were allowed to travel.

Ruto has defended the Turkish businessman saying he holds a clean record and has since confirmed that he helped him acquire a Sh15 billion loan from Equity bank to set up a business venture in Uganda.

On the day Ruto was blocked, he made a telephone call to the Head of Public Service who is reported to have informed him that he was not aware of the instructions to the airport to stop him.

Nonetheless, immigration officials did not allow him to travel and he eventually retreated and went back home after spending 5 hours at the airport in what is seen as an escalation of his differences with President Uhuru Kenyatta with whom they fell out soon after the March 2018 handshake with former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

In an interview on Inooro radio and TV on Wednesday morning, Ruto blamed a section of influential state officials of orchestrating imagined war between him and the president.

“They are pushing me for a confrontation with the president but I will not succumb to it,” he said.

State House has not commented on the matter.