The escalation of crime in Kenya over the last two years continues to cost the economy and erode confidence in the government's ability to secure the country. Is Kenya steadily becoming a failed state? If I was President Uhuru Kenyatta's detractor I would attribute the deteriorating state to utter incompetence and dereliction of duty but I happen to be his supporter and admirer and believe he means well for Kenya. Methinks that those in the president inner sanctum have misled and mis-advised the president so badly that it practically amounts to sabotage. Though far-fetched, the notion of sabotage, albeit unwittingly, is very well within the realm of possibilities. I have no reason to personally doubt the President's own intentions but you have to wonder if he is the one in charge or those in his inner circle who hold him at ransom and by extension the whole country. I don't understand his inaction to protect the country and preserve lives.
MANDERA & KAPEDO
Just days ago, Al-Shabaab gangs hijacked a bus in Mandera and massacred 28 innocent Non-Muslim Kenyans. Reports indicate that the victims were asked to recite or read the Koran and those who couldn't were summarily executed. At the time of print, this is practically breaking news. Shortly afterwards, as President Uhuru Kenyatta visited the Middle East, His Deputy William Ruto took to the presses and announced that the Kenyan Military has responded and killed 100 plus of the Al Shabaab attackers in neighboring Somali! http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000142352/over-100-terrorists-killed-by-kdf-troops-in-counter-operation-says-ruto . So far nothing other than Ruto's statements supports this assertion but I question its veracity because it appears too contrived and convenient that this government that has demonstrated such an incredible ineptness in fighting crime across the country suddenly gathered enough intelligence about a sophisticated militia within 48 hours and rapidly pursued them and killed 100 plus! It is just far fetched to me. Why didn't they use that intelligence to prevent the massacre in the first place? Is it possible that the military killed innocent people and disguised it a successful security operation only for the militiamen to plan further attacks? How does the Kenya government know that the 100 it claims it killed were in fact the perpetrators? How???
I am at a loss reconciling this tragedy and the government's reaction to the one in Kapedo, Baringo County just weeks ago where ragtag animal bandits ambushed and killed 21 poorly trained and poorly prepared police officers. The graves are still fresh from that attack, President Uhuru Kenyatta swiftly stepped in to mitigate the damage. The President toured the area less than 24 hours later and gave an ultimatum to the locals to a) identify the bandits/criminals and b) surrender all weaponry in their midst or else… http://mobile.nation.co.ke/news/President-Uhuru-gives-ultimatum-on-policemen-massacre--/-/1950946/2508462/-/format/xhtml/-/14x8xig/-/index.html And true to his word, within 48 hours of the President's admonition, the government deployed military servicemen and equipment to clear the area of the bandits. You have to admire the president's quick reaction and resolve to restore law and order and I give him all the credit- it shows a commander in chief who actually means business and is willing to act when and if provoked. I can't fault the president for his actions or motives in Kapedo- BUT, was this the right call and is this the future? The optics of this is that even the President himself, by resorting to deploy the military, has no confidence in the interior ministry and the police force to restore, maintain and uphold the rule of law. It is a stunning admission. Weeks later, there is scant or no information on the success of the military in Kapedo, Kenya. So how did the government develop enough intelligence to go after 100 plus al Shabaab militiamen in a neighboring country within 24 hours when it can't find bandits in Kapedo inside Kenya? Or is it possible that the Kenyan military actually identified and killed hundreds of folks that it labels as bandits only that they have not been disclosed? I mean going by the kills in Mandera isn't it plausible to assume that perhaps many have also been killed in Kapedo?.
OUT OF TOUCH:
The out of touch government has choreographed the façade of tranquility and being in charge but reality bears otherwise and speaks for itself. I think President Uhuru Kenyatta is The government has all but lost the battle on security and finally it appears as even the president himself is throwing in the towel if you believe what was printed in the media, http://www.nation.co.ke/news/Uhuru-fires-back-at-critics-over-security/-/1056/2536354/-/tjd0rgz/-/index.html. I am not going to second guess the media's reports about the president, whom I support by the way, but it is unfortunate- the truth is we didn't have this level of lawlessness before his administration, why now and why can't it be tamed? Most if not all Kenyans are frustrated that the government just has blinders on and obstinately refuses to acknowledge the obvious much less seek help or accept it when offered. The President still maintains the same security team that has failed Kenyans time and time again, it is all about leadership and of course the attendant failures are manifestly evident in the ever escalating number of graveyards. When is enough enough? Most if not all Kenyans are very frustrated and hard pressed to justify the role of government and the use of their taxes if it cannot fulfil the most fundamental responsibility of governance, i.e. security.
FEMALE STRIPPING & PUBLIC SEXUAL ABUSE
In Nairobi, call it primitive or a public nuisance, the recent, or should I say on-going brazenly shameless rampage by lawless male hooligans stripping and sexually abusing defenseless women is an epitome of a fast degenerating lawless state. The stunningly in your-face rambunctious bullies are so blatant that they are practically taunting the state to do something about it and perhaps they know something the general public doesn't know and that is, the state is incapable and unwilling of doing anything about it- unarmed defenseless women are on the own. http://www.nation.co.ke/video/-/1951480/2525506/-/gsx06a/-/index.html . In some cases they are compelled to fend for themselves and break the law in the process as you can see, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNcgq021dZU . The excuse the police are giving for not arresting and prosecuting the criminals whose acts are captured on camera and broadcast to the world up until the government was compelled to appoint a special unit to address the crime was that no police report or complaint has been filed, I kid you not- how preposterous is that? So will the government send in the infantry to protect these women as well? The state has abdicated its responsibilities so much so that now the Law Society of Kenya, a private entity, is offering to step in and prosecute these crimes! http://www.nation.co.ke/news/Lawyers-petition-to-prosecute-men-stripping-women/-/1056/2536298/-/oxs7t1z/-/index.html. zThe point I am trying to make is that lawlessness in Kenya has spiraled way out of control and the state appears too inept and complacent to do much about it; the fact is the current state of affairs is simply unsustainable and the government is derelict in in its duty to maintain peace and defend the nation.
PROPER USE OF THE MILITARY
First I think the government overreacted and used disproportionate force in deploying the military to fight bandits within Kenya's borders in Kapedo. The speed with which the administration responded came across as knee-jack and impulsive. The military's role and purpose in our society is to defend the country against external threats and should not be used to fight its own, it is a bad precedent, a first in the country's history and I hope the last. The message this deployment sent was a tacit admission that the police are derelict and cannot be relied on to maintain law and order much less public safety. Whether the president acted on a whim or shot from the hip is open to interpretation but I suspect he wanted to make it very clear that he has had enough; the problem though is that there is a proliferation of crime and weapons everywhere in the country, will jubilee deploy the military across the country every time there is a flare up of crime? Obviously not, the president just acknowledged that. What does that do to public and investor confidence in the country as a whole? If tourism is anything to go by, the road ahead is murky.
Unlike the despicable public stripping and sexual abuse of women we are witnessing, banditry is an age-old nuisance in Kenya and is generally between ethnic communities who refuse to share resources such as grass for their livestock and often escalates to rustling of the livestock itself. Historically this has been considered a law enforcement matter handled by regular or administration police while more serious threats to national security such as the Mandera massacre, the Westgate Mall attacks can be handled by the Military units like the paramilitary General Service Unit (GSU) in a limited scale. But now it appears that even the police also need protection and the Military is the only option left. At this rate it will be stretched too thin to be effective and folks, these are the makings of a failed state. Trust me. The breakdown of law enforcement apparatus capable of or even willing to restore law and order is bewildering but even more alarming is that the leadership is in denial. When a ragtag group of bandits overwhelm a trained badged police force and kill tens of them at will, there is no other reasonable explanation but simply a systemic colossal failure- top to bottom. This was not aberration but a pattern now- if the police cannot even defend themselves how is the rest of the public supposed to much less feel safe? So what is the government to do?
ICC CONSIDERATION:
I am not suggesting that the military would do anything to jeopardize the president and his deputy insofar as their standing with the ICC is concerned but we cannot fully discount the possibility that something could go terribly wrong, enough to trigger cries to the ICC and fuel an already fluid situation at The Hague. Believe me, folks are watching and looking for an opening and whereas this may seem far-fetched, there are those out there that would want to exploit the situation and try to portray the president as impulsive and trigger happy and therefore capable of ordering attacks on innocent folks even when that may really not be the case. On the other hand, some would argue that the ICC has handicapped the president and his deputy thus rendering them ineffective in securing the country.
REMEDY:
First, I would tell President Uhuru Kenyatta to clean house and either replace of reshuffle his administration, particularly in the Interior Ministry. The current leadership structure represents the status quo which is itself untenable any way you look at it. Something has to give and the folks handling security clearly are not delivering and if he retains them, he is in effect approving their job performance and condoning crime and the status quo. He has to rebuild public confidence in his government and I am not sure his current team is up to the task. I would also advise him to rescind the military action in Kapedo and replace it with regular police as quickly as possible. I would also advise him to seek and or accept help if and when offered, refusing help in such a climate is really tantamount the proverbial ostrich burying head in the sand in the face of clear and present danger.
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