Replace Saitoti and appoint police chief
THERE has been an eruption of violence in eastern Kenya in the last few days. In the Tana River Delta area, 48 people were killed in clashes over water and pasture between the Pokomo and Orma communities.
In Mandera, clan fighting left five dead yesterday. This comes at a time when there is neither a substantive Internal Security minister nor an Inspector General of Police. Prof George Saitoti died in the chopper crash on June 10 and Defence minister Yusuf Haji has been acting as Internal Security minister since then.
Mathew Iteere is Police Commissioner but an Inspector General of Police must be appointed by August 31 as part of the police reforms. The formal selection process has stalled leaving the police leadership in limbo.
There is now a security crisis in Mandera and Tana River. Yusuf Haji has his hands full in Somalia with Operation Linda Nchi. Moreover, the general election is barely six months away.
Kenya cannot afford to have a power vacuum in the security services. President Kibaki and government need to act decisively to provide substantive leadership. A replacement for Saitoti should be appointed and the selection of an IGP should be concluded before the end of the month.
Quote of the day: “There is no state with a democracy except Libya on the whole planet.” — Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown when the NTC took control of his compound on August 23, 2011.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment