Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof. Kithuure Kindiki has launched a special Anti-Stock Theft Police Unit (ASTPU) at Mlango, Isiolo County as the government pledges to eradicate cattle rustling and banditry in the region.
CS Kindiki said the government is committed to bringing to an end the outdated practice of cattle rustling that had been a headache for as long as before the independence.
While he commissioned the new ASTU camp, the Cabinet Secretary issued a stern warning to criminals in the region saying that they must either reform or be ready up for ruthless action from the government.
He said that the police officers are under strict instructions to appropriately use the weapons at their disposal to protect lives and property in accordance with the Constitution of Kenya.
Prof Kindiki noted that the government had lost a number of police officers at the hands of criminals; a situation that he reiterated will not be tolerated adding the officers are well trained to deal with all sorts of security threats.
He said police officers must neutralize any criminal who challenges them violently before they harm any of them or a member of the public.
CS Kindiki said that the government will soon establish two similar police units at Yamicha and Biliqo Marara in an effort to fight rustling and banditry in the region.
Isiolo County Leaders led by Governor Abdi Ibrahim Guyo lauded the move by the National Government to establish the Police Unit in the notorious Mlango area, terming it as the most significant step towards eliminating cattle rustling among the various pastoralist communities living in the region that had suffered deaths in the past.
Mr. Guyo called upon the government to ensure that the animals stolen over time were recovered and handed over to owners to stop any form of revenge attacks among the pastoralists which had been common practice.
Isiolo Senator Fatuma Dullo and the Woman Member of Parliament Mumina Bonaya also appealed to the pastoralist communities in the region to cultivate a culture of respect for human life and desist from taking part in cattle rustling.
By David Nduro
