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{
    "id": 1291189,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1291189/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 99,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Aden Duale",
    "speaker_title": "The Cabinet Secretary for Defence",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 15,
        "legal_name": "Aden Bare Duale",
        "slug": "aden-duale"
    },
    "content": " Madam Temporary Speaker, I would like to correct this notion that Mogadishu is safer than Garissa, Lamu and Tana River counties. That statement is false. In the last 24 hours, there have been incidents that have happened in Mogadishu. I want the Senator to be factual and honest about the numbers he is giving. In fact, our border and other regions of Somalia that we occupy, including Kismayu and the whole of the southern part, are now safer than Mogadishu. Number two, I have given a breakdown. We are not in Somalia. It is not the KDF. It is not the instruction of the Commander-in-Chief of Defence Forces, His Excellency, President William Ruto, that our troops are in Somalia. Our troops are part and parcel of the AU Transition Force. I have given the drawdown beginning June of this year. Let me speak for 4,000 plus KDF soldiers. The last soldier will leave on 31st December, 2024. This includes Ethiopia, Uganda, and Burundi. The gradual withdrawal will start in July. So, it is not me to advise. It is a function of the AU and the UN Security Council. The case is different just like our troops serving in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). They are there as part of the East African Regional Force. They have a mandate of three months ending in December. Kenya is a huge economic block in DRC. Our banks are there and the Port of Mombasa depends on that area. If in December that mandate is not extended and we feel that we have achieved regional security and peace of the Great Lakes’ Region and our economic interest in that part of the world, our troops will come back on 1st January from DRC. However, the troops in Somalia are under the AU and UN structure. Our border is secured. From Kiunga to BP 1 in Mandera, we have more than 18 forward operating bases. We are building more camps in Marsabit County. We have also expanded the Wajir International Airport for more air surveillance; not only in our country, but in the region. That is what our Air Force uses. We have 24/7 surveillance by our navy on the Western Indian Ocean with Somalia. No ship carrying anything can enter"
}