Activist Mercy Tarus Clarifies Court Summons Skip On Finland Scholarship Scam
Activist Mercy Tarus clarified on Friday the contempt of court allegations leveled against her on Thursday, September 12.
The Uasin Gishu native is a key witness in the Ksh1.1 billion Finland Scholarships Scandal case involving former Uasin Gishu County Governor Jackson Mandago.
There is that kind of man who thinks every girl will like them because of money or connections.
— Mercy Tarus (@thisafricangirl) September 13, 2024
If they don't get the worshipping they expect they can go to worst levels just to be noticed.
That is how corrupt politicians and corrupt people are. They don't believe you can say…
In a video from Thursday’s court proceedings, the magistrate warned Mercy Tarus that she could face contempt of court charges for failing to appear to testify.
A few media outlets also reported on the matter.
However, the activist who rose to prominence after bravely confronting Uasin Gishu leaders in 2023 took to X to express her surprise at the new development, claiming she had not been informed of the exact dates of the court session.
It has come to my attention that there are posts and media reports here that I did not attend court to testify.
— Mercy Tarus (@thisafricangirl) September 12, 2024
1. I attended the court session virtually the whole of yesterday from 9:00am to 4pm, without taking a break. However there was no time for me to testify because they…
“It has come to my attention that there are posts and media reports here that I did not attend court to testify,” Tarus started her statement.
Insisting that she only learned about the impending contempt of court charge through social media.
Tarus went on to say that she only learned of the new official dates for testifying through an official summons issued by the investigating officer and her lawyer last evening after she had seen the story on social media.
Tarus added to her explanation that she had virtually attended the entire court session on the previous day, Wednesday, September 12.
Furthermore, her mother and legal representative were both physically present in court.
She clarified that she was told she couldn’t testify due to time constraints, and that the court had decided to schedule hearings one week per month for three months.
“That means, in the next 90 days, the case is to have a special hearing one week every month. Meaning, this could go until December 2024,” she said.
How can people defy court orders then come to court and ask the magistrate and the court to apologize to them for issuing warrants of arrest on them?
— Mercy Tarus (@thisafricangirl) September 12, 2024
They even went ahead to demand the magistrate to recuse himself. We had to go on a 15 minutes recess because of that silly…
She concluded her post by stating that she was not afraid of any corrupt leader and would confront them all in court.
The case has faced numerous challenges thus far, including the magistrate’s request to recuse himself, as well as the governor and ex-governor’s failure to appear in court until a warrant was issued on Monday, September 9.
Activist Mercy Tarus Clarifies Court Summons Skip On Finland Scholarship Scam
