Transport CS Kipchumba Murkomen has addressed rumours surrounding the formation of a team to investigate the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) chopper crash that claimed the lives of Chief of Defence Forces, General Francis Ogolla, and nine others.
Murkomen clarified his stance in response to lawyer Miguna Miguna’s statement, which criticised reports alleging Murkomen’s involvement in the formation of such a team.
In a statement on X, Murkomen said that his docket is only involved in probing crashes involving civilian aeroplanes. “As a department of transport, we don’t investigate military planes. Our work is strictly restricted to civilian aeroplanes,” he said.
The CS added that this includes private and commercial aeroplanes. He further stated that it is KDF’s mandate to investigate the cause of the crash.
“As you heard from the President yesterday, it’s the exclusive mandate of the Kenya Defence Forces to investigate accidents involving military aircraft. My Ministry deals with purely civil aviation both private and commercial which is non-military and non-state aviation,” he said on X.
On Thursday, President William Ruto announced the passing of Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) due to the crash. Additionally, he revealed that the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) had formed an internal team, led by Lt. General J. M Omenda from the Kenya Air Force, to probe the crash’s cause.
