Yusuf Abubakar is not a new name in the Coast region as he is known by many for defending those accused of terrorism.

Having practiced his profession for 23 years, he didn’t know the career he chose would make or destroy him. In a candid interview with Nation, he reveals how he has become an enemy to many.

The lawyer says that he has received threats many times because of defending the most-wanted terrorists in court.

He defended the late Sheikh Aboud Rogo and Salim Mohammed who is currently being sought by security agents. He takes pride that all those he defends have never been convicted.

His problems started when the police accused him of meddling in their affairs. Also, he has been perceived as an enemy by the community.

“But I will never regret the path I chose, because not only has it given me experience but it has also taught me lessons,” said Abubakar.

He further said his challenge is when he is defending a murder or terror suspect, because he is going against the State to prove that the accused is innocent.

He said since he defended Aboud Rogo and his wife, it has never been an easy journey for him.

People lashed out at him saying he is defending terrorists and criminals, adding that he is proud those he defended have never been convicted.

Abubakar said he has no security even when his life comes to danger, “My security is God only.”

He has received blames from the affected families, blaming him for defending suspects.

He also revealed that he also deals with murder cases. He said Omar Lali’s murder case where he was accused of killing Keroche heiress Tecra Muigai was a unique one.

He said although Omar Lali was a poor man fighting against a rich family, he is proud for succeeding in proving his innocence in Lamu before the case was transferred to a court in Garsen, Tana River County where he also succeeded in proving his innocence.

“When defending murder and terror you have to be keen, careful and gather enough evidence,” said Abubakar.

He added that Hemed Salim’s case is still fresh in his mind. This is after Salim was abducted in 2014 outside Masjid Musa in Mombasa and they are still following up on his whereabouts seven years later.

Despite being a tough lawyer, he also experiences hard times. He recalled some of his toughest cases being those of by-election petitions in Shela and Ganda wards.

“It is difficult for a petitioner to succeed in such cases but we won the Shela one in 2013 and Ganda in 2017,” he said.

He recalls his childhood days and what made him choose to be a lawyer. He said back then, they lived as squatters in their land with no place to call home.

His father didn’t own a title deed and this prevented him from getting a loan to send Abubakar to a good school.

Witnessing his father receiving threats daily rekindled his passion to go for law as a career.

Having been born and raised in Gazi, Kwale County, he went to Makongeni Primary School before proceeding to Barani School in Kanamai Kilifi County.

He later transferred to Serani Primary School in Mombasa County where he completed Standard Eight in 1986.

He later joined Shimo La Tewa High School where he sat for his Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exams in 1990.

Abubakar then joined University of Nairobi for law between 1992 and 1996. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in 1998.

Since then, he has been practicing law and he said at 52 years, he is proud to have touched all fields of law.

Abubakar has tackled criminal, constitutional, land, Kadhi, terror and murder cases.

He declared that his interest is in politics currently. “In 2004, I contested the Kisauni MP’s seat under Shirikisho Party where I was Secretary General, But I lost and emerged number three.”

He said he believes he can balance politics and law and that is why he is going to try it in 2022 by contesting for a seat in Lamu County.

The post How ‘Terrorist’ Lawyer Turned An Enemy To Many Due To Love For His Job appeared first on Daily Trends.

The public has been warned against waging violent acts on people suspected to be having Covid-19 or those that have travelled from places that have the pandemic.

The warning was sounded by Lamu Governor Fahim Yassin Twaha in light of suspected stigmatisation of Covid-19 cases within the past two months.

He made these remarks earlier today during a press briefing in the county’s Mokowe headquarters over the status update on the county’s preparedness with regards to managing and preventing the spread of Covid-19 within the county.

He revealed that although some two patients had exhibited presumed coronavirus symptoms while being admitted at the Mpeketoni Sub County District Hospital, it was too early to tell whether they were a risk to the community.

“Presumptions have led to rumours of a possible Covid-19 outbreak which is not the case and residents should be careful not to fall under the trap of stigmatising those seeking treatment for similar symptoms, which could just be TB or pneumonia,” Twaha stated.

Flanked by Lamu County Commissioner Macharia Irungu and the Covid-19 Management Committee, the governor further revealed that the samples of the two patients had been taken and dispatched to KEMRI Laboratories with results expected within 24 hours.

“The two patients have already been isolated and contact tracing is already underway to know their travel history,” the governor said.

He advised the public to call the hotline numbers that the county public health had provided to enable trained public health officials handle such suspects instead of people taking the law into their hands.

Twaha also stated that it was very important for people to understand that anyone could get infected and urged residents to adhere to Ministry of Health preventive guidelines.

No Covid-19 case has been reported in Lamu since the outbreak of the global pandemic within the country last month. However, Twaha reiterated that the county government’s health facilities have designated isolation facilities that would help in case of an outbreak in the area.

The governor was optimistic that the measures put in place by the county government were sufficient to tackle the spread of the virus should it arise.

He also commended the Lamu County Assembly for reallocating Sh50 million from their internal budget to aid the county manage the crisis.

The county government has so far set aside Sh10 million as an emergency fund for the county.

“The county is in talks with suppliers to bring in as many ventilators as possible in case of an outbreak, and we will also embark on a massive sanitizer distribution programme to keep the virus at bay.

“We are also organising how relief aid will be distributed to vulnerable families across the county in the wake of reduced revenue streams in more than 60 percent of households within the county,” he added.

He further said that TVETs in Lamu were so far engaged in making as many as 4,000 masks which would be distributed for free across the county as they were now too expensive to buy from any supplier.

These sentiments echoed by CC Irungu who urged well-wishers to coordinate with the Covid-19 county management team to distribute relief items rather than embark on solitary missions.

“We will not entertain individuals distributing relief items outside the designated programme in a bid to win political points. We urge that all relief should be steered towards this committee which will then channel it to the public,” Macharia said.

He also urged members of the public to adhere to the curfew regulations to avoid run-ins with law enforcement agencies whom he said were only keen to ensure the safety of Kenyans within the MOH regulations provided.

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Al-Shabaab militants have launched an early morning attack on Camp Simba, a US Naval base which houses both Kenyan military troops and US troops in Lamu County.

Gunfire is ongoing at Camp Simba which hosts both American and Kenyan soldiers.

The number of casualties is unknown at this time.

Al-Shabaab issued a statement claiming it took control of a “part of the base”.

Camp Simba is used by Kenyan and US forces.

The Al Shabaab says the attack is part of its campaign entitled “Al-Quds (Jerusalem) will never be jusaized” which was first heard in Jan 2019 after DusitD2 attack.

The group says it destroyed airplanes, vehicles and other military hardware .

The attack comes barely days after another attack being witnessed in Lamu County.

Al shabaab militants on Thursday attacked three Lamu bound buses leaving three dead and several others injured.

The raid on Camp Simba comes days after US killed Qaseem Soleimani, an Iranian major general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

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Mombasa Raha, a Lamu bound bus is under attack by suspected Al-Shabaab militants at Nyongoro area within Lamu County.

Three people have been confirmed dead so far following the incident.

Lamu County Commissioner Irungu Macharia confirmed the incident. The bus came from Mombasa and was headed to Lamu.

There were no details on casualties or injuries by press time.

Some passengers have reportedly fled into nearby bushes and gunfire can be heard.

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