Coast Interfaith Council of Clerics (CICC) has vowed to take a leading role in eradicating juvenile gangs in insecurity prone areas of Likoni and Changamwe, in Mombasa County.
Addressing the media, during a forum with Mombasa security stakeholders, the clerics admitted that they have a big role in correcting youth wicked behaviors which highly contribute to violence witnessed in the County.
Sheikh Khalfan Ali, Board member of CICC, said that they are now on a mission to do a sensitisation campaign to youths and parents through sermons and religious teachings as a way to correct immorality.
Sheikh Ali said they are also going to organise frequent forums with the security personnel in the region to brief them on any security breach that they have observed in the community.
“We will sit down with youths and talk to them, give them life lessons advice. We will also hold some of these forums with politicians to discuss on how we can collectively help our youths against crime,” he said.
His sentiments were echoed by Bishop Jeremiah Kesekwah of Organisations of African Instituted Churches (OAIC) who wanted parents to work in collaboration with clerics in instilling discipline and good values to the young ones.
The Changamwe Sub-county Directorate of Criminal Investigation Boss, Josiah Njiru, advises parents to take up their roles of correcting their children while still young, saying covering it up will only worsen their discipline.
Njiru mentioned that, in most cases where a young person has been found committing a criminal offence, their parents come out to defend them, claiming the security team is harassing the young people.
“We will appreciate it if a parent can take the initiative and bring his/her child to the police station when he has evidence of him committing a crime, this is the good upbringing that we are advising fellow parents,” he stressed.
The Likoni Sub-county’s Head of the Directorate of Criminal Investigation, Richard Koywer, said that they are on the lookout to catch the juvenile gang members who commit criminalities to innocent citizens in the area and run to neighbouring Kwale County and hide.
Mr Koywer said that they have local intelligence agents who liaise with them to inform them of whatever is happening in the villages, adding that everything happening gets to them.
“I know some think we are just sitting in our offices, the Chiefs are there to inform us, we also have other informers which we cannot disclose here who let us know of everything happening on the ground,” he said.
By Chari Suche
