Kenya; Senators have voiced their concern on the runaway insecurity in the country and called on the Government to address the situation before it gets out of hand.
The legislators also demanded that the top security chiefs take responsibility and resign if they cannot guarantee the citizens' safety. The Senate has scheduled an informal sitting next week to deliberate on the matter with the security chiefs.
Yesterday they expressed their displeasure with the manner in which the security agencies were handling the docket. This emerged after Turkana Senator John Munyes informed the House of impending attacks in the area on Wednesday. The senator was speaking in reference to Wednesday's night attack where more than 100 raiders attacked a village in Turkana County, killed one person and injured several others.
He protested that the attack occurred barely a week after another one in the same village.
Munyes was angered that despite informing the House and Speaker Ekwe Ethuro directing that the Security Committee Chairman Yusuf Haji and clerk Jeremiah Nyegenye meet with top security officers to avert possible bloodshed, nothing was done. "If our security is not guaranteed, we are going to mobilise members of the Turkana community to invade and stop the exploration and mining of the oil," said the senator.
Munyes told the House it was unfortunate that the Government was busy guarding oil wells in the county at the expense of Turkana community's security. "Security officers in the region are busy guarding Ngamia One oil exploration site while the community is left exposed."
The senators united in grief and took the government head-on, accusing it of doing little to stop the rising spate of senseless killings that have been witnessed across the country. Mutahi Kagwe (Nyeri) stressed that it is the high time the top security chief took responsibility and resigned.
Kiraitu Murungi (Meru) said the insecurity crisis is much deeper than can be handled by Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph ole Lenku alone. He called on the Government to relocate military barracks from Nairobi to regions where challenges of security are dire.
Minority Leader Moses Wetan'gula, senators Martha Wangari (nominated) and Billow Kerrow (Mandera) called for quick action to avert more deaths.
Kisumu Senator Anyang Nyong'o said there was low morale in the security forces as witnessed in the poor response to incidents of insecurity.
Janet Ong'era (nominated) warned that the public could resort to self-defence.
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