- Kindiki said the raids were purely a law enforcement measure and not linked to politicians.
- He addressed the press shortly after holding an indoor meeting with the Machakos County Security and Intelligence Committee.
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Interior CS Kithure Kindiki has asked politicians to keep off illicit brew raids and allow law enforcement officers to perform their mandate.
Kindiki said the raids were purely a law enforcement measure and not linked to politicians.
“The operations must be left entirely to law enforcement agencies. Multiagency teams that are mandated to enforce the law are the only ones allowed to take part in the operations. We don’t want to see politicians engaged in the operation issues by conducting raids,” Kindiki said.
He addressed the press shortly after holding an indoor meeting with the Machakos County Security and Intelligence committee led by area county commissioner Josephine Ouko at her office in Machakos town on Monday.
“That’s not their (politicians)work. Let the elected leaders serve the people according to their mandate which includes building schools, and hospitals, and providing water and electricity. They must stay away from law enforcement and leave it exclusively to law enforcement agencies.”
He emphasized that as a government, they have rolled out a nationwide campaign and security operations to apprehend and neutralize the threats that are posed by traffickers in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances as well as illicit killer brews.
The CS said for a long time in the country, we have treated the matter of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and illicit killer brews as a social problem.
“Because of what these substances do to our young people; they lead to broken families,” Kindiki said
He said these substances have been affecting the country’s economy for a long time.
“Most of our productive people, instead of spending their days creating livelihoods for their families and contributing to nation-building. They waste time taking hard drugs and drinking killer brews,” Kindiki said.
Kindiki said the National Security Council was determined to ensure that the problem of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and killer brews is no longer just a social problem and economic burden in the country.
“It’s an extension threat to the sustainability of our country. It’s our view as the country’s security managers, not unless we destroy the capability of drug traffickers and those who manufacture killer brews, our country’s population is going to be altered in a major aggregation manner,” Kindiki said.
He said the country might not in the future have generations that can take up civic responsibilities if the vices were not gotten rid of.
Kindiki declared those who manufacture, transport, distribute and consume hard drugs and killer brews alongside psychotropic substances as Kenyans’ enemies.
“Those that follow in that category are enemies of Kenya just like terrorists, bandits and organized criminals. We are going to use all the resources that Kenya has, all security infrastructure that the country has to crash, defeat and overcome those that are engaged in destroying future generations by enslaving our children in hard drugs and killer brews,” he said.
He directed each county security and intelligence committee in the country to generate a County Specific Operational Plan.
“Here in Machakos, we have already mapped out what we need to do and progress has been made. We have arrested nearly 300 people in the last three days, done 765 raids across the county and apprehended motor vehicles used to transport drugs and illicit liquor including counterfeit alcohol that is dangerous to public health,” Kindiki said.
Kindiki said the ongoing operations weren’t short-term, but perpetual and will continue until the problem is eradicated in the country.
He said they had cancelled and closed down all alcoholic outlets that were licensed contrary to the Alcoholic Drinks Control Act.
Kindiki said all licenses that were issued by various county governments must be revoked as a national security measure.
He said the government was going to introduce new laws that would categorise those who manufacture, sell, distribute and consume hard drugs, psychotropic substances and illicit killer brews as dangerous criminals.
“We will be prosecuting them using the most punitive measures that are ever found in our statute books where we have placed terrorists, leaders of organized crime including banditry. That’s where we have placed those people who are engaged in this destructive business,” Kindiki said.
“Since this is a national security threat, we won’t entertain any commercial, economic or social interests to ride national security interests,” Kindiki said.