SHAMEFUL! Gachagua Speaks On Malala Arrest Over ‘Echoes Of War’ School Drama
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has criticized the pandemonium that occurred in Nakuru today when security forces apparently sought to arrest former UDA Secretary General Cleophas Malala.
Gachagua took to social media to express his concern that the criminal justice system is being used to suppress innovation and social auditing.
“It is a shame of unimaginable proportion that dozens of DCI detectives in five vehicles have been dispatched to arrest and intimidate Senator Cleophas Malala for writing a script that has won its way to the National Drama Festival in Nakuru,” Gachagua said.
Malala’s satirical piece, Echoes of War, which was shown at the National Drama Festival in Nakuru, is now at the center of a political controversy.
According to Gachagua, what is happening to Malala is a clear abuse of state authority to silence a literary voice.
The use of the criminal justice system to suppress creativity and social audit has reached alarming proportions.
— Rigathi Gachagua (@rigathi) April 9, 2025
It is a shame of unimaginable proportion that dozens of DCI detectives in five vehicles have been dispatched to arrest and intimidate Senator Cleophas Malala for… pic.twitter.com/3CME7NiZK7
“The satirical play, Echoes of War, is innocent in itself in the literary universe, just to explain to those who feel threatened,” Gachagua said.
“In any case, the detectives will harass the messenger, but the message remains; this action only creates more awareness of the literary piece and the message.”
The former DP argued that instead of intimidating critical voices, the government should embrace them and understand the importance of art in keeping authority accountable.
He went on to say that persecuting creatives is a short-sighted move that ultimately backfires since the message lingers and resonates even more strongly.
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Earlier, former Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala claimed he was arrested by the DCI while preparing Butere Girls High School students for the play’s production on Thursday.
Cleophas Malala, writer of contentious Butere Girls play, says he's barred from seeing the learners pic.twitter.com/NQfFcDXzNV
— NTV Kenya (@ntvkenya) April 9, 2025
In a video posted online, the former UDA Secretary-General is shown in a confrontation with police officers led by a guy he claims is the Nakuru area DCIO outside Kirobon Girls High School in Nakuru, which hosts the National Drama Festivals.
I am now being arrested for scripting a play, ECHOES OF WAR.
— Cleo Malalah (@Cleophasmalala) April 9, 2025
Shame!!! pic.twitter.com/rLOG8F0pMg
Butere Girls had been banned from staging the Gen Z-themed play on grounds that its theme critiques the government.
The court, however, lifted the ban on April 3 when Justice Wilfrida Okwany suspended any letter banning or barring the school from participating in the festival.
SHAMEFUL! Gachagua Speaks On Malala Arrest Over ‘Echoes Of War’ School Drama
