Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i has warned politicians in Lamu against inciting residents amid heightened security threats in the region.
Speaking to leaders from the area, on Friday, January 7, the CS stated that he will be using the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) led by Chairperson Wafula Chebukati to ensure politicians inciting violence are barred from contesting in future elections.
Matiang'i maintained that he will take action when detectives probe the cases of violence reported in Lamu and find evidence linking politicians to incitement.
He further pinpointed that the suspects were propagating ethnic profiling as the country prepared for the elections in August this year.
In a statement, the Ministry of Interior stated: "the looming voter registration drive and land disputes are to the primary causes of the latest attacks and displacements in Lamu."
CS Matiang'i urged elected leaders and opinion shapers from Lamu to commit to ending the violence and assured them of the government's unwavering support.
‘We have been paying very close attention to issues in Lamu. We are determined to ensure the ugly spectre of violence - on a scale that we have regrettably witnessed in the past years - does not recur," the CS stated.
"We are confident of success in bringing to justice financiers and perpetrators of violence regardless of their position in society in the ongoing security operation to restore normalcy in the region. I assured them of the government's commitment to ensure sectarian clashes never recur and resolve pressing issues on land ownership and issuance of title deeds to Lamu residents," he added.
Lamu Governor Fahim Twaha attributed the latest attacks to the General Election claiming that unnamed politicians planned to benefit from the displacement of residents who are not deemed as indigenous.
‘The truth is that most of the elected leaders in the county won by very thin margins. Some people think that the best way to alter future election results is to ensure members of certain communities fail to vote by displacing them,’ he stated.
Lamu leaders also urged the government to prioritize the issuance of title deeds in the country to address contested land ownership and to ensure more local youths are employed in government projects in the region.
