State officials defend Uhuru’s security gaffe

Senior State House communication officials have defended President Uhuru Kenyatta over his recent remarks on rising insecurity.

In a statement, the directors said the President was right when he asked Kenyans to stop blaming his government alone for rising insecurity. The fire-fighting statement was signed by Munyori Buku, Emmanuel Talam, Eric Ng’eno, James Kinyua, Munira Muhammed, Dennis Itumbi, David Nzioka and Thomas Kwaka.

While attending a gender event at the University of Nairobi recently, on runaway security Uhuru said, “No matter how much we do, there will never be one policeman for everyone, and unless we work together with the security forces, the responsibility lies on me and you.” The statement was not taken well by a section of Kenyans.

Consequently, the communication team yesterday sent a statement to newsrooms saying: “The President made very strong and clear observations on certain issues that have taxed the nation’s mind in the recent past. One of them was on national (in)security situation and the other, gender-based violence. These observations have been taken out of context, distorted and hyped by angry, emotional commentators.”

The team, however, admitted that the security situation is unsatisfactory saying crime and insecurity are a distressing phenomenon.

“Without a doubt, security is not doing enough. The President was abundantly clear on this. At the same time, Government cannot police every individual, every household, every metre of road and every inch of Kenyan space. It is our duty, individually and collectively, to render ourselves policeable by adopting conduct that promotes, and not undermines, our collective safety,”they said. They also condemned recent stripping of women.