CS Kindiki says going to Haiti won't affect homeland security

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has assured Kenyans that the planned deployment of police officers to Haiti will not jeopardise security in the country.

Speaking in Ndumberi, Kiambu on Monday, the CS said that much as the deployment is happening at a time when the country is facing various security challenges, adequate mechanisms will be deployed to ensure that both run concurrently without overlapping.

“As the minister responsible for the security of our country, I want to assure you that our deployment of officers in Haiti will not in any way affect our programs, our resolve, and our commitment to ensuring that we defeat all the enemies of security in our country," he said

The CS explained that while the current policing demands have not exhausted the specialized units that have been deployed in special operations in the country to fight terrorism, banditry, and other serious security threats.

Read: Explainer - Why Kenya is taking part in the Haiti mission

He said the mission will comprise different units as deemed fit without delving into the specific units.

“We have not even revealed the category of officers that we will deploy. There is a difference between general policing and specialized units that deal with serious threats to national security, those ones are intact,” he said adding that the government will follow the due constitutional process in the deployment.

Article 240 of the constitution requires that for the president to deploy any forces outside the country whether military or otherwise that constitute organs of national security, parliament must approve.

“The use of the word parliament is deliberate to mean both houses and so my assurance to all Kenyans is that there will be no shortcuts. It is a great honor for Kenya to have the United Nations request us to contribute towards peace efforts in other nations and this is not the first time for Kenya to do so. Kenya contributed significantly to the bringing of peace during the restoration of peace in Namibia in 1989-1990, in 1993 in Sierra Leone, in Liberia, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” Prof said Kindiki.

The CS is expected to camp in Lamu this week where a special security operation has kicked off said the government will publish a list of about 17 names of persons behind the recent killings and atrocities in the county.

“We shall request Kenyans who have information about their whereabouts to share with us and a reward will be given.

Read: Chilling message to Kenyan police from Haiti insiders

Some are foreigners from Somalia and others are Kenyans committing acts of espionage for reasons we cannot understand. We will require them to surrender to the nearest station or military camp failure to which we shall find them and deal with them. I urge politicians not to politicize security issues, just leave this to us,” he said.

On the ongoing Operation Maliza Uhalifu in the North Rift region, Prof Kindiki said the government is 75 percent done in laying the necessary groundwork for normalcy to resume.

“During the campaigning period, President Ruto promised that his government will be the first to succeed in eradicating banditry and cattle rustling and we will complete the work that is remaining, we know what to do and what the gaps are to overcome that problem going forward. Going forward the terror of bandits will be history in our books the same way they read about Vasco da Gama,” Kindiki said.

The CS further picked out Murang’a and Kiambu counties as having criminals who are hiding in culture to spread cultural extremism.

Read: President William Ruto: We shall succeed in Haiti

“Article 11 of the constitution recognizes the collective culture of the people of Kenya and calls on the state to promote positive cultural attributes across the country but at the same time, there are criminals hiding in culture to cause harm and spread negative ideologies in parts of Kiambu, Murang’a and other places pretending to be community elders yet they have formed criminal groups like Gwata Ndai, Mihiriga kenda and other names which they have accorded themselves. As we speak, we are still dealing with the effects of the negative ideologies spread by criminals hiding in the Muslim religion in Lamu, Christianity in Kilifi, and traditional religions elsewhere,” he said.

The CS ordered the closure of two centers where those hiding in culture in Kiambu and propagating the circumcision of young girls and old women in Ikinu, Githunguri constituency in Kiambu, and in Ndumberi in Kiambu town.

“Investigations into their activities are ongoing and some have since recorded statements. We shall prosecute all their leaders without sparing anyone. This is not a fight against culture but we will not allow people to hide behind culture to propagate Female Genital Mutilation and other backward, primitive, and harmful practices against the children and women of Kenya,” he said.

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