Organised criminal groups are time bombs which must be defused

By Idy Pembere

In the recent past, the country has witnessed a sporadic proliferation of organised criminal grouping that have gained traction within a relatively short time. What is even worrying is the timing, since the populace is engulfed in an election mood that is just a stone throw away. And horrendous memories of the 2008 post-election violence should be a constant reminder of fluidity of an election.

Organised criminal groups though is a phenomena that can be found in almost every country; from the Yakuza in Japan, to the Triads in Hong Kong, FARC in Columbia, to the numerous youth gangs of large urban agglomeration everywhere, including Kenya. Perhaps it is only The Vatican that is spared from this societal malaise. In as much as these groups cannot be eliminated, concerted efforts should be made to curtail their spread and operations.

Of interest though is that we have an Act of Parliament that criminalises these groups, besides providing a raft of punitive measures.

Prevention of Organised Crime Act 2010 defines organised criminal group as a “structured group of three or more persons existing for a period of time and acting in concert with the aim of committing one or more serious crimes in order to obtain material or financial gain.”

This Act is meant to strengthen efforts by law enforcers to effectively weed out these groups but unfortunately, much of the provisions are merely gathering dust on the shelves of vigilant house with little interest to enforce it. Never mind that these gangs hold their meetings in full public glare with some administering oaths with open defiance.

In this regard, there is need for concerted efforts by government to deal lawfully with the menace posed by outlaws like Mombasa Republican Council, Mungiki, Sungu Sungu and the new sect reportedly ganging up in North Eastern Province.

Ngamia-1 exploration

As if to rub salt in a bleeding wound, politicians are competing for prime time attention in appeasing these groupings in disregard of Section 3(b) of the Act, which criminalises any involvement with them, and a hefty penalty of 5 million or a 15-year jail term, or both.

Politicians have politicised the fight against organised criminal groups with some anticipating to gain political mileage, thereby handicapping any efforts by various security agencies tasked with protecting Kenyans. Most of these politicians believe they can use these groups to capture power and once in office they abandon or eliminate them.

Unfortunately, this strategy can come back to hound them like a boomerang. They only need to borrow lessons from a host of countries where abandoned criminal groups usually paralyse government operations, sabotage elected leaders whom they had hitherto supported and in some extremities, they go for the jugular; power.

Furthermore, the country is endowed with a diversity of resources, which collectively belongs to the people of Kenya. Therefore abetting the prevalence of criminal gangs bend on Balkanising sections of the country should be condemned.

Talk of the therapeutic coastal sandy beaches, which attract throngs of local and foreign tourist that contributes 15% in part to the GDP. Yet this can be wiped out in one go if MRC, energised by political rhetoric, makes good their claim while government is resting on its laurels.

In Turkana County, oil — an African curse — was discovered in early April with Ngamia-1 exploration well guaranteeing in excess of 20 meters of net oil pay. However, this county is home to perennial border conflicts between Kenyan Turkanas and Ethiopian Daasanach communities over water resource.

This county also nests over 900 armed militias that have caused terror and trepidation among the populace. Of concern though is proximity of the conflict area to the oil wells and the accompanying dangers if concerted efforts are not instituted to quell this gang, who might harbour an overnight appetite for our oil resource and instigate violence.

Recall the spontaneous eruption of armed gangs during the post election violence in agriculturally potent former provinces of Rift Valley and Central, where production was lukewarm due to the violence that later took a biting on our GDP.

Unfathomable

Therefore the government needs to move swiftly to control operations of these groups by first killing the political debate on the issue. Secondly, they need to draft a comprehensive policy to deal with issues raised by these groups, which are legitimate and largely border on marginalisation and progressive strategies that accommodate all citizens.

Thirdly, the newly formed Independent Police Oversight Authority should decentralise and strengthen its structures at the county, district and even location level, including community policing so that wananchi appreciate that part of the responsibility to ensure their own safety also lies on their shoulders.

Unless urgent adroit measures are taken by the government to mitigate the situation, with full enforcement of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 2010, we could be sitting on a time bomb with unfathomable consequences upon explosion.

The writer is a Political Scientist.

idypembere@yahoo.com