Sungu Sungu: Abagusii self-help group or gang of cold blooded murderers?

 Sungu Sungu remains outlawed

Sungu Sungu, a self-styled vigilante group, is despised and loved in equal measure among the Abagusii.

But their involvement in arrests, investigations, detaining suspects in illegal holding cells and passing of judgements in Kangaroo courts is now raising eyebrows.

The group began arbitrating cases involving debtors, land disputes, adultery and family conflicts, punishing witches and fixing political and business competitors in the region, almost 10 years ago.

For five years, they have been operating under the guise of community policing committees.

Youth from poor and lowly educated families are particularly attracted to Sungu Sungu as it offers them money and higher socio-economic status.

In 2016, hundreds of Suneka residents thronged the Kisii-Suneka road in a protest march against alleged resurgence of the outlawed Sungu Sungu gang.

The angry residents claimed the outlawed gang was financed by a local politician to upstage a genuine community policing group for political reasons.

A majority of local residents fear talking about the group’s activities. The group is said to operate a chain of boda boda businesses in Kisii town.

They also allegedly own a number of brothels that have led to an upsurge of twilight girls along the streets of Kisii town, sources claim.

While in Kisii, Independent Police Oversight Authority board member Tom Kagwe said they were investigating claims that a vigilante group was involved in a number of crimes in Kisii and Nyamira counties.

Kagwe said the current community policing committees in the region were not legally constituted and that the operations of such organisations should be based on a constitutionally accepted mandate.

In 2011, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights released a report titled Sungu Sungu: Merchants of Terror and Death in Kisii, which indicated that those who purport to be acting as security providers under the community policing initiative have clearly over-stepped their mandate.

The report stated that there were assaults perpetrated by those purporting to be members of community policing. Several claims were made involving instances in which suspects were severely beaten and injured.

The commission called for a review of the existing community policing structure in the region, with particular attention on vetting, recruitment and adherence to the principles and mandate of community policing, so that criminal elements do not operate under the cover of community policing.

It also recommended that the State Law Office ‘operationalise’ the Witness Protection Agency so that those who have suffered serious violations or witnessed the same can be guaranteed of security and protection should they be required to appear in court to give evidence.

Some members of the community, particularly those from lower Nyanchawa estate, said that they are still compelled to pay protection money to suspected Sungu Sungu members, who claim to be providing security.

These amounts range from Sh50 to 200 per month per household. But the commission has warned that anybody found collecting money in the pretence of offering security will be arrested and prosecuted.

Residents here believe that despite helping to maintain security, it is not clear whether the groups are involved in community policing or engage in criminal acts.

“It is hard to tell who is in the community policing committee and who is in an illegal gang. It is even common knowledge that not all sub-county commissioners support Sungu Sungu because of their reputation for gross human rights violations,” said a resident of Nyanchwa estate who sought anonymity for security reasons.

A number of cases of isolated criminal activities, including robberies and murders have been blamed on a renegade squad of community policing.

He added: “The political leadership within Kisii region has to brainstorm to bring to an immediate end the inhuman acts of these groups, which are operating under the pretext of community policing in the interior of the counties.”

Jane Asiago, a Kisii town resident believes that the idea behind the formation of community policing groups comprising of volunteer youths in the early years was a noble one.

“It was aimed at complementing the work of the police force in the region at a time when we had high cases of crime, and it worked well during its initial stages,” said Asiago.

She said that it later emerged that some youth began demanding bribes and allowed themselves to be hired by people who had old scores to settle with their neighbours, both in the political and social arenas.

“The problem is that these youths are allowed, with the support of certain police officers, to operate in villages as a parallel government,” she added.

But Kenya Police spokesman Charles Owino maintained that Sungu Sungu remains banned, warning members that they risk prosecution for contravening the law.

 He emphasised that the gang was itself a source of insecurity, with some members known to take the law in their hands by punishing locals perceived to have committed crimes.

He said some gangs have hijacked community policing and Nyumba Kumi strategies whose purpose is to promote partnership between government policing agencies and grassroot communities.

“We have had cases where they burn people on suspicion of practicing witchcraft. As far as we are concerned, Sungu Sungu remains outlawed, just like other vigilante groups,” warned Owino.