It has been 16 days fo mental torture and sleepless nights for the family of Lydia Olando Maloba, a Kenya Airways Station Manager based in Kinshasa, who is detained at a military camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Lydiah and her Congolese colleague Olivier Lufungula were arrested on Friday, April 19, 2024.
They have since remained in detention despite being freed by the millitary court, Kenya Airways said.
Back home in Kenya, Lydiah’s family has been living in anguish with her immediate relatives saying she has been held incommunicado at a millitary camp.
“We are praying. We are trusting in God but we need the government to come through and help us find a solution for this,” distraught Lydiah’s daughter Yvonne Mary Maneno told Citizen TV.
In DRC, the family says Lydiah’s husband Olando Maloba has been stranded in Kinshasha for 13 days now trying to secure her release.
The family says it is time for the government to swing into action and secure freedom for its citizen considering that the matter is beyond KQ now.
“We appeal to the government to listen to our appeal and take action that will secure the freedom of our daughter and her colleague,” Lydiah’s father said.
Lydia’s mother on her part said:
“We don’t know what is happening. The issue is troubling us as a family. We wish that the matter is addressed and they be released.”
The Kenya Airways exonerated its staff from blame following the arrest over alleged missing customs documents of a cargo that was to be transported by the airline.
KQ said the cargo in question was not uplifted or accepted by them due to incomplete documentation.
The airline said during the arrest, their phones were confiscated and they were denied contact with anyone.
They were arrested by the Military Intelligence Unit.
“Kenya Airways (KQ) confirms that on Friday, April 19th, 2024, two of our employees at our airport office in Kinshasa were arrested and continue to be detained by the Military Intelligence Unit known as Detection Militaire des Activities Anti Patrie (DEMIAP),” KQ said in a statement a week after their arrest.
The airline said while Kenyan Embassy officials and a few members of staff were allowed to visit them it was only for a few minutes.
It said that while the Military court heard the matter and ordered their unconditional release, they are still in detention.
“Despite the court orders, the military intelligence unit is still holding them incommunicado, yet these are civilians being held in a military intelligence facility,” the airline said.
Last week, Kenya Airways suspended flights to Kinshasa saying it is unable to conduct its operations well with the continued detention of the two staff.
“As a result, we reached a difficult decision to suspend flights to Kinshasa effective April 30, 2024, until we can effectively support these flights,” the statement read.
“The continued detention of our employees has made it difficult for us to supervise our operations in Kinshasa, which include customer service, ground handling, cargo activities, and generally ensuring safe, secure, and efficient operations.”
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