The proliferation of criminal gangs across the country poses a grave threat in the run-up to the General Election set for August 10 next year. These gangs are likely to be used to cause violence as rival groups and crooked individuals plot to illegally influence the outcome of the vote.
Keen to secure the country ahead of the elections, the government has launched a crackdown in which it targets 109 criminal gangs and other organised groups for hire.
The Ministry of Interior and National Administration has intensified security operations ahead of the elections. By August, 1,827 suspects had been arrested and 729 convictions secured. Another 716 cases are still before the courts.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has warned that the government will specifically target the high-level financiers and politicians who bankroll the “goons” for political mileage.
Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo says the government has blacklisted the groups, in what is, indeed, a sharp increase from the 89 declared illegal in 2016. Western Kenya, with 38, has the largest concentration of such criminal groups. The Rift Valley region has 22 and Nairobi 20.
The Nyanza region has 12 groups, and the coastal region, 11, among several others. There is growing concern that rogue political actors and crooked business operators are weaponising youth to instigate violence, extortion, and voter intimidation.
Gangs are likely to be used to carry out criminal attacks and harassment and to disrupt preparations for elections.
Civil society organisations have warned that the recent killings at political rallies demonstrate the need to enforce accountability by punishing rogue elements within both the government and opposition to curb impunity.
It is not enough to just warn that action will be taken against those who recruit, finance, or mobilise such groups. They should be thoroughly investigated and arraigned to prevent the gangs from unleashing violence during the elections.
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