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{
    "id": 515069,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/515069/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 317,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "We do not understand why the County Commissioner, whom we have announced publicly that we have zero working relationship with---, because he does not share with anyone security intelligence information with the team that he is working with. That gentleman was transferred a couple of weeks ago when county commissioners were transferred routinely by none other than the Office of the President which is in charge of transferring County Commissioners. Instructions came later from State House to cancel that transfer. After the new officer reported, three or four days later, he was recalled and the commissioner is still in that place. This is a Commissioner whom many of us, I and the Governor included, believe is part of the problems we have in that county. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, the Senate Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations was there and they will tell you some of these things. How do you explain when an OCS who had just stayed there two months, simply because he is working hard, patrolling at night to get hold of those guys who blow Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and so forth - because of complaints from the Al-Shabaab and their sympathizers - was moved without the knowledge of the Inspector-General by a telephone call from the office to the Vigilance House? The transfer was cancelled after we intervened. Three months later, the same person was also moved. How do you explain that? There are a lot of things which we cannot explain regarding the actions of some of the leaders who run security in that area. The Government also needs to take that matter seriously. I appreciate the Senate Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations headed by Sen. Haji. The Committee was in Mandera to investigate the matter following a Motion that I brought to the House. They have first-hand information on what is going on. One of the challenges that the public told them about is that if the public know what is going on, people who sympathise with the Al-Shabaab and when they give information, the failure to act on that information discourages them from sharing it again. Immediately the information is given, they are brought out. People are arrested and released. We have a serious problem. The Government should provide security to Mandera which is part of this country. Mandera is neither in Somalia nor Ethiopia. It is in Kenya. If the Government is unable to provide security, let it tell the people of Mandera that it is unable to provide security against the Al-Shabaab or against the terrorists. Can you look after yourselves? Otherwise, what shall we do to a county where in the headquarters, a governor cannot move from his house to his office and members of the public cannot leave their houses after 6.00 p.m. yet there are hundreds of security forces in the town? We have the Administration Police (AP), the Regular Police, the Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) and the KDF but nobody is secure there. The levels of patrols at night are literally nil. Offices of the Governor of Mandera County are guarded by the Kenya Police Reservists (KPR). Why should you ask for KPR when you have over 500 or 600 policemen, the Army and the General Service Unit (GSU) and everyone inside the town? So, that is a serious matter. There is lack of seriousness in handling the situation. That will explode and we are worried that parts of this country will be like the north-eastern part of Nigeria. Terrorists will take over. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}