• Leaders want the camps to be concentrated in areas that have proved to be porous and easily accessible by al Shabaab militants.
• They said more needed to be done to effectively address the al Shabaab menace.
Image: CHETI PRAXIDES
Image: CHETI PRAXIDES
Lamu leaders have urged the national government to establish more security camps in terror-prone areas in the region.
They want the camps to be concentrated in areas that have proved to be porous and easily accessible by al Shabaab militants who continue to carry out deadly attacks in the county.
Lamu has witnessed a spate of terror attacks over the years, leaving hundreds of security officers and civilians dead.
Currently, ‘Operation Amani Boni’, which was launched in September 2015 is underway to flush out al Shabaab militants believed to be holed up within the Boni Forest from where they have been launching scathing attacks in parts of Lamu.
Speaking during a multi-stakeholder engagement meeting on peace, security, and cohesion in Mokowe town on Monday, Lamu leaders praised the security agencies for the strides made in restoring peace and stability.
They said more needed to be done to effectively address the al Shabaab menace.
The meeting, which was spearheaded by Search for Common Ground under the Uchaguzi Bila Balaa Project, and funded by the European Union, was meant to provide a platform for the leaders to front their views on security issues.
Basuba MCA Barissa Deko urged security agencies to work harder in sealing any current gaps and loopholes that are being maximised by terrorists to conduct attacks in Lamu.
He listed renowned terror hotspots like Mlima wa Faru, Kwa Omollo Bridge, Kwa Msuo, and Sankuri, between Mararani and Kiunga in Boni Forest, and called for the establishment of military camps in such areas to contain terror attacks.
Other hotspots include Mambo Sasa area between Witu and Pangani and Nyongoro area along the Lamu-Witu-Garsen road in Lamu West which leaders say are in need of active security camps to avert terror attacks.
“If we have security camps in these areas, which are known to be easily accessed by militants, I believe we will largely be able to stop these attacks and deaths. Let them seal all loopholes,” Deko said.
In a daring attack on December 28 last year, a group of al Shabaab militants clad in full KDF attire ambushed vehicles in the area leading to the deaths of two people.
A day later on December 30, a KDF soldier was killed after their vehicle ran over an IED at Mlima wa Faru area.
Kiunga MCA Omar Bwana called for the reopening of the Kenya-Somalia border and the intensification of security patrols in the areas along the border.
He said the closure of the Kenya-Somalia border point at Kiunga in 2011 greatly impacted negatively on the livelihoods of the border residents.
He said peace and development can only be achieved when people are given the freedom to empower themselves socially and economically.
“I support the establishment of security camps within the areas with a history of al Shabaab attacks. Security patrols should also be increased within our villages and routes. The Lamu-Somalia border reopening should also be fast-tracked,” Bwana said.
Witu MCA Suleiman Farah urged the national government to recruit more national police reservists to bolster security in the villages.
In early 2018, the state set up extra security camps in marked areas believed to be al Shabaab hotspots along the Lamu-Witu-Garsen road, including Milihoi, Lango la Simba and Gamba.
On Sunday, at least 10 General Service Unit officers were wounded after their vehicle, an armored personnel carrier ran over an improvised explosive device planted by suspected al Shabaab terrorists at Mlima wa Faru in Lamu West at around 9am.
Three KDF officers were killed on the same day after their vehicle was hit by an IED in Pandanguo area.
Image: CHETI PRAXIDES