Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen released a statement on Saturday, May 3, outlining the progress made in fighting banditry from January to March in the first quarter of 2025.
In the statement, Murkomen noted that the number of banditry and stock theft cases had decreased during this period, with only 167 cases of stock theft compared to 263 cases in the same period last year. Additionally, a total of 4,935 livestock were stolen compared to the 8,557 during the same period in 2024.
"Our first quarter security report covering January-March 2025, indicated a significant decrease in cases of banditry and stock theft," part of the statement read.
Unfortunately, this also saw an increasing number of criminal cases being recorded, including the killing of 21 people, including a police officer, eight civilians and 12 suspects.
This was also a decrease as compared to 58 persons who passed in the first quarter of 2024.
"These significant gains are attributed to the concerted efforts of our security officers, including the NPR, working in close collaboration," Murkomen stated.
However, the CS noted six challenges that were still impeding the fight against banditry in the country.
Top of the list by Murkomen was the proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons, closely followed by the commercialisation of banditry through readily available markets for stolen livestock.
He also highlighted political interference and incitement being among the challenges impeding this fight.
The other challenge noted was the competition for water and pasture during periods of drought, as well as fights over communal land boundaries
Lastly, he cited inaccessible safe havens for criminals due to poor infrastructure and mobile network coverage, among other challenges.
However, he expressed his and the government's commitment to setting aside resources for infrastructure development across various institutions and providing security officers with better equipment and resources to tackle the challenges.
Meanwhile, he called for collaboration among security officials and political leaders in the fight against banditry.
"I urge Kenyans to collaborate with our security officers as we strive to secure our Country. Let us shun all acts of political incitement and revenge. I urge political leaders to stop playing politics with such important national security concerns," he concluded.
