Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka made a last-ditch effort to save Margaret Nduta, a Kenyan woman sentenced to death in Vietnam for drug trafficking.
In a statement on Sunday, March 16, 2025, Onyonka noted that President William Ruto could have already intervened in the matter to save Nduta from planned execution per Vietnamese laws.
The vocal senator opined that it would have been better if Nduta could have been repatriated and tried in accordance with the Kenyan laws.
“Margaret Nduta Macharia is a Kenyan, and it would be correct if she was repatriated back to the country to be tried within our laws over the crimes that she is being accused of.
“The President should have already made a personal effort in his capacity to initiate diplomatic negotiations with Vietnam leadership concerning a matter that is involving a Kenyan citizen,” Onyonka wrote.
His letter to Ruto
On Saturday, March 15, 2025, Onyonka shared a letter directed at the head of state. In his lengthy letter, Onyonka implored Ruto to explore the possibility of leniency and repatriation in her case.
“While acknowledging the sovereignty of the Vietnamese judicial system, the Government of Kenya must intervene to ensure that Ms. Macharia’s life is preserved and that she is given an opportunity to serve an appropriate sentence in her home country under Kenyan law,” Onyonka’s letter read in part.
“Kenya has, on numerous occasions, stood for justice and the humane treatment of its citizens worldwide. It is my sincere hope that, through your leadership, a diplomatic resolution can be reached to save Ms. Macharia’s life and allow her to face justice in her home country.”
Nduta’s verdict
Nduta was convicted on March 6, 2025, for trafficking two kilos of cocaine and is now facing execution scheduled for Sunday, March 16, 2025.
She was arrested in July 2023 while traveling to Laos and found with said illicit drugs.
Vietnam has among the world’s toughest narcotics laws, where anyone found guilty of trafficking 100 grams or more of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, or amphetamine face the death penalty.
Drug trafficking remains widespread, however, with 41,400 suspects arrested in 26,469 cases in 2023, up from 36,000 traffickers and 24,000 cases in 2022, according to data from the Ministry of Public Security.
With her fate seemingly sealed, her family still believes Nduta was set up in the matter.
“We are devastated as a family. We are not sure that Nduta, who we know as a straightforward daughter who only ventured out of the country in 2023 to seek her fortune, became a drug peddler,” the family said while pleading for help in reversing the verdict.
Embakasi East MP Babu Owino also shared a video pleading with the head of state to intervene.
By the time of this publication, the government had not publicly responded to the plea from several Kenyans over Nduta’s case.
