A Nairobi court has released anti-IMF loan crusader Mutemi Kiama on cash bail.
Milimani Senior Resident Magistrate Jane Kamau declined a request by the prosecutor to remand the activist for 14 days saying there are no compelling reasons to warrant his detention.
He is accused of being behind a poster circulating on social media indicating that President Uhuru Kenyatta is not authorised to act or transact on behalf of Kenyans.
The poster emerged as Kenyans expressed diverse opinions on the government's decision to borrow money from the International Monetary Fund.
State prosecutor Joseph Irungu Gitonga pressed for Mr Kiama to be detained for 14 days to enable cybercrime officers to examine the published graphic before deciding what charges to file against him.
“The presidency is a symbol of unity and any attack on him on the institution is contemptuous,” Mr Gitonga submitted.
Mr Kiama is accused of contravening various provisions of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Act, including false publication.
Police said preliminary investigations had shown that two Twitter handles which made the publication of the poster are linked to Mr Kiama.
The publication was to the effect that "this is to notify the world at large that the person whose photograph and names appear above is not authorised to act or transact on behalf of the citizens of the Republic of Kenya and that the nation and future generations shall not be held liable for any penalties of bad loans negotiated and/or borrowed by him”.
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