Parliament to probe Baragoi, Garissa unrest

Two parliamentary committees have been asked to investigate the operations carried out by security officers in Garissa and Samburu County and report back to the House in a week.

The Defence and Foreign Relations and the National Security and Provincial Administration Committees will visit the two areas that suffered unrest in recent days and report to the House probably on Wednesday next week.

Deputy Speaker Faarah Maalim ordered the committees to work with other interested MPs to expedite the investigation.

He thus asked members of other two committees: Equal Opportunities and the Justice and Legal Affairs, to join in the investigation.  

Defence Committee chairman Fred Kapondi asked Parliament to allow the two committees to visit the affected areas

Adan Duale (Dujis), while supporting the request, said he had visited Garissa and witnessed the destruction firsthand.

A seemingly infuriated Mr Duale, whose constituency encompasses Garissa town, said he was ready “to die while protecting the Constitution and also his constituents".

"The President cannot keep quiet from what is happening in Garissa,” Mr Duale said.

Medical Services minister Anyang’ Nyong’o said the security concerns raised by the legislators were an issue of national importance that should be treated seriously.

“It is a matter of concern for the Cabinet and should be also for the Head of State,” he said.  

Assistant Defence minister Joseph Nkaissery, who arrived late, attempted to defend the military but his contributions were shot down by Mr Maalim who ruled him out of order saying the minster was contributing to a matter that had already been dispensed and rested.

Earlier, MPs questioned the procedure used to deploy Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to Baragoi in Samburu County; the area where at least 37 police officers were killed by raiders a week ago. Read (Death toll in Samburu attack now at 37)

They said the Constitution did not allow for arbitrary deployment of KDF.

The legislators cited Article 241 (3) (c) which states that KDF “may be deployed to restore peace in any part of the Kenya affected by unrest or instability only with the approval of the National Assembly.”

Ekwe Ethuro (Turkana Central) said the deployment was “unconstitutional” and that Parliament had not been informed prior the move.

The two committees will visit the areas in northern Kenya and also Eastleigh estate in Nairobi where chaos erupted on Sunday after a grenade hurled at a matatu killed nine and injured many.