Marsabit security team vows to prioritise fight against terrorism
Molu Ibrae (centre) with professional and political leaders from Marsabit, Mandera, Garissa and Wajir counties address the media in this file photo over increased insecurity in Northern Kenya region.
Security agencies and stakeholders in Marsabit County have vowed to prioritise fighting terrorism.
The partners under the auspices of the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya and Marsabit Interfaith Council petitioned the county Governor Mohamud Ali to adopt the Violent Extremism and Radicalisation agenda.
Led by Marsabit Deputy County Commissioner David Saruni, they called on the devolved unit to integrate the agenda into the upcoming County-Integrated Development Project 2023-2027 (CIDP).
Mr Saruni revealed that the petition contained various recommendations, the chief of which is calling on the devolved unit to fast-track and operationalise the Marsabit Action Plan on prevention and countering violent extremism.
“We passionately appeal to Governor Ali to adopt the Violent Extremism and Radicalisation agenda into the CIDP to help us effectively tackle the menace,” Mr Saruni said.
The CIDP being the basis of the resource allocation of the devolved unit would ensure prioritising tackling and prevention of violent extremism in the region.
Also, to enhance external proliferation of resource mobilisation from various state and non-state stakeholders to act concertedly.
The move was informed by the proliferation of violent extremism and terrorist activities in the region.
According to Marsabit Deputy County Police Commander Johnson Wachira, the county had reportedly been notorious for terrorist activities.
He denied that the county was a training ground for terrorist activities as reported by a section of the residents.
He however admitted the county had been known for producing youths who have been linked to international terrorist groups such as Shabaab and ISIS. He also agreed that the porous borders posed greater terrorism and radicalisation threats to the vast county.
However, adequate measures had been put in place to pre-empt, prevent and counter violent extremism and radicalization in the county..
Saku Accountability Forum CEO James Forole on his part linked the horrendous inter-ethnic killings that were reported in the county especially between April-May 2022 to terrorism.
He agreed with the National Counter Terrorism Centre’s report that Marsabit inter-tribal killings met the threshold of being categorised as violent extremism and radicalisation adding that characterisation of the ethnically and politically motivated cleansing qualified to be classified as emerging from violent extremism acts.
Marsabit Interfaith Network Chairperson Sheikh Mohammed Nurr observed that although responsibility for combating crime and safeguarding security solely lay with the security agencies, however, the emergence of violent extremism acts in the county proved it was a common responsibility that had to be shouldered collectively.
He revealed that the religious leaders had put a raft of measures to counter radicalization in the places of worship and schools in the county.
They were also at the forefront of promoting cohesive coexistence among all the residents of different religions.
He appealed to the county government to adopt the violent extremism and radicalization agenda into the CIDP to help the county keep in check such threats.
Marsabit County Interfaith Youth Network Abdiaziz Boru on his part appealed to the national and county government to create more job opportunities for the county youth to avert their involvement in terrorist activities.
He was concerned that a good number of youths who had joined terrorism groups from the county were lured with promises of getting rich quickly.
“If it is not for the massive joblessness of the majority of youth in this county, some of them would not fall for the sweet-for-nothing promises given to them by the terrorist groups that approach them,” Mr Boru said.
