Kisumu County Commissioner Mohammed Ramadhan Mwabudzo has issued a stern warning to politicians and individuals mobilising youth to perpetrate violence, saying security agencies will pursue everyone involved regardless of their status or location.
Addressing the media on Monday, Mwabudzo security agencies have intensified operations across the county over the past two weeks, resulting in the arrest and arraignment of more than 200 suspects facing various criminal charges.
He said the operations would continue until security agencies are satisfied that criminal networks have been dismantled.
The commissioner appealed to residents to share information about areas where they feel unsafe, as well as hideouts used by criminals and locations where illegal weapons are stored.
Mwabudzo condemned the use of young people to settle political scores, saying preliminary investigations showed that many of those involved in Sunday's violence had been mobilised without fully understanding what they had been recruited to do.
According to him, the youths were allegedly assembled at Victoria Park, issued with pangas and jembe handles before being directed to participate in the violence.
"Money is not everything," he said, urging young people to reject such assignments.
He criticised leaders who use unemployed youth to fight political battles, saying the lives lost during Sunday's violence were those of innocent young people, including boda boda riders.
Mwabudzo also urged politicians visiting Kisumu to notify security agencies in advance whenever they hold public functions, including church events, saying the government has sufficient security personnel to provide protection.
He warned leaders against hiring criminal gangs to provide security, insisting that only authorised security agencies should perform that role.
The county commissioner disclosed that intelligence officers had detected the mobilisation early enough, allowing security personnel to be deployed before the violence escalated.
He said the timely deployment helped prevent what could have been a far deadlier confrontation.
"We will track down the conveners. We will track down those mobilising the youth. It doesn't matter who you are or where you are hiding; we will get you," Mwabudzo warned.
He added that security agencies are not only pursuing those who took part in the violence but also those who financed, organised and coordinated the operation.
Mwabudzo reiterated that Kisumu would not tolerate politically instigated violence and pledged to ensure the county remains peaceful and safe for residents, businesses and investors.
