Meru Governor Isaac Mutuma on Thursday asked President William Ruto to deploy the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to help contain the volatile security situation affecting the northern grazelands of the county.
Speaking during the A.I.P.C.A. Holy Oil Celebration in Meru County, Mutuma made remarks likely to spark debate over the scope and extent of KDF deployment.
''Mr President, there is a Goliath here who is asking us where our God and father are. Our president, four people succumbed after being ambushed just the other day. Because you are here as the Commander in Chief, order the military to come here,'' Mutuma said.
''If you finished the insurgents in Lamu, there is no problem here? You did help Kenyans in Baringo and West Pokot. What is this that is here that is disturbing our peace here in Meru?" the recently sworn-in governor appealed.
The county chief's comments came following a recent security scare where four reserve officers from the National Police Service (NPS) were ambushed by bandits and succumbed to their wounds.
According to Mutuma, the four were, however, ambushed by underage boys from a nearby community.
In what could be deemed controversial, the governor urged the president to allow his community to launch a retaliatory assault using unprintable language.
However, Ruto appealed to the governor not to take the retaliatory route, stating that he would, together with the Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, find a long-lasting solution to the issue.
"Do not make rungus, Mr Governor, leave that to me. I will deal with the issue together with my deputy, as we have done with other disturbed parts of the country before," Ruto assured.
Further, the Head of State revealed that he will host a consultative meeting with the leaders from the region to address the insecurity challenges facing the region.
According to the governor, despite police officers going after the bandits, their efforts were unsuccessful, with four of the government stores still missing.
Mutuma, however, revealed that the County Government of Meru would waive the hospital bills of the four in a bid to help their loved ones.
KDF Deployment
Article 241(3)(c) of the Constitution stipulates that the KDF may be deployed to restore peace in any part of Kenya affected by unrest or instability, but only with the approval of the National Assembly.
''The Defence Forces may be deployed to restore peace in any part of Kenya affected by unrest or instability with the approval of the National Assembly,'' it reads.
Further, sections 31 and 33 of the Kenya Defence Forces Act (2012) provide that the President, as the Commander-in-Chief, may authorise deployment for internal security. However, such deployment must be notified to Parliament within 7 days.
The military, once deployed internally, operates under strict rules, and its role is supportive to civilian authority, primarily the National Police Service.
Meanwhile, the KDF may also be deployed during emergencies such as natural disasters or pandemics without prior approval, provided the deployment is reported to Parliament.
However, when deployed to support police operations during civil unrest or inter-community conflict, prior approval from the National Assembly is required.
