Police in Kwale County have launched a fresh crackdown on illicit drug peddlers.
The County Police Commander (CPC) Joseph Nthenge on Monday directed strict action against drug peddlers in the region.
On Sunday police manning a roadblock intercepted a boda boda rider transporting 120 big rolls of bhang at Mteza area in Matuga sub-county.
The boda boda rider escaped on foot and abandoned the motorcycle and the illicit cargo he was transporting near the police barrier.
Nthenge said drug trafficking remains a major headache for the police in the coastal county but vowed that they will not rest until the region is drug-free.
The police chief said they have intensified foot patrols to deal with the drug menace that threatens to ruin the lives of young people.
He denied allegations that the police are not doing enough to crack down on the drug peddlers, adding that they will increase vigil along highways.
Speaking to KNA in his office in Kwale town, Nthenge said with the help of the community police would be able to run drug dealers and other hardcore criminals out of town.
He urged the community to support the security agencies in eradicating the drug menace, saying drug dealers do not care who they sell their drugs to.
The police action comes after the National Authority for the Campaign Against Drug Abuse (Nacada) has expressed concern that youths in the coastal counties of Mombasa, Kwale, and Kilifi are under the grip of illicit drugs.
The anti-drug agency says the alarming rate of hard drug use among the youth in the region has assumed a worrisome dimension despite persistent campaigns against the vice.
By Hussein Abdullahi
