Citizen TV’s Willis Raburu has come out to defend himself against allegations that he revealed the identity of ICC witness 536.
In a blog post, the journalist said that his account was hacked, and we should stop crucifying him.
Here is his reply.
The obvious response would be, I did not do this and then I would proceed to show you how, but that will only clear my name. While I am innocent, a grave injustice has been done to the said ICC witness whom we are not even sure was the one named.
Ladies and gentlemen let us all be sober, let us as a country know that we are one people, and return to what the forefathers fought for..My fellow Kenyans as I said it would be perfect to clear my name, to show you here how much of an injustice was done to me, as my account was hacked. I have the facts and the trail of tweets but I also have the opportunity…..
The opportunity to call for sobriety during this ICC trial, for calmness and for patriotism. Lets stop and think for one moment where we have come from as a country, and think of individuals on social media or otherwise who try to take us back to the past, try to drag us back into the arena of anguish and toil and to the stone-age act of using someone else to pivot your success. while social media has its place, in many cases, like this one, it has been grossly abused to perpetuate lies which beats me really….
I would hate to be that person who is sacrificed at the alter of imaginary differences so that others can be propelled to success just because social media gives us that forum.
I would like to call on bloggers and journalists all over, to understand that the right of reply is critical and that things are not always what they seem to be, no matter how sure we are we should practice the art of second guessing, for the path to truth is full of questions and the answers often lead to more questions. Journalistic practice requires of us to always verify before publishing or airing any item. I can categorically say nobody has called or asked from me, what the true position is. We call this the right of reply. I would like to state clearly that I did not name any ICC witness.
I wish to thank all of you who have practiced that benefit of doubt principle, to me the fact that you reacted so much and questioned the move is a sign of the critical role that the media still plays in shaping opinion and underscores the fact that we are a people still fragile at heart but who remain aware of rights as embedded in the constitution. I also wish to thank all who have voiced their discomfort in the same, thank you, because you serve as an example that we are truly a democratic country that allows us to ventilate and as such i respect all that has been said in this democratic space.
I urge us to remain steadfast and focused on the path of peace.
I remain committed to my career as a journalist and an information professional. God bless you and God bless Kenya.
I thank you
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