Mombasa leaders protest failure to end insecurity
Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho (R) and County Commissioner Nelson Marwaon June 1, 2014. Business, religious and civil society leaders as well as ordinary people in Mombasa say they are tired of insecurity and want Joho and Marwa to work as team. PHOTO | LABAN WALLOGA | FILE
What you need to know:
- The leaders told Governor Ali Hassan Joho and County Commissioner Nelson Marwa to stop their war of words and work together to stamp out the insecurity, which has become a major threat to the local economy.
- The NGOs Muslims for Human Rights, Haki Africa and Huria also urged Mr Joho and Mr Marwa to tackle insecurity jointly and avoid the state’s divisive strategy.
Business, religious and civil society leaders as well as ordinary people in Mombasa say they are tired of insecurity.
Tuesday, they condemned escalating violence and general insecurity and told the national and county governments to restore normalcy.
The groups spoke in the wake of the killing of five people — two on Monday night and three on Sunday — by hooded men.
The Monday night killings happened in the town’s central business district of Kenyatta Avenue and the Sunday one in Soweto, Likoni.
JOHO AND MARWA
The leaders told Governor Ali Hassan Joho and County Commissioner Nelson Marwa to stop their war of words and work together to stamp out the insecurity, which has become a major threat to the local economy.
In a statement read by Bishop Tee Nalo and his deputy, Bishop Paul Mwura at Darajani Hotel, The Kenya National Congress of Pentecostal Churches and Ministries said: “Our leaders should put political differences aside and tackle insecurity together. We cannot afford to leave security in the hands of just a few people.”
They asked Mr Joho to forge good working relations with Mr Marwa. “Their differences only make it easy for our enemies to hurt us,” they said.
The leaders urged the government to accept positive criticism and the Opposition to appreciate to err is human. “We believe that our nation is under a serious security threat,” they said.
The NGOs Muslims for Human Rights, Haki Africa and Huria also urged Mr Joho and Mr Marwa to tackle insecurity jointly and avoid the state’s divisive strategy.
They also urged Muslims to stage a demonstration on Friday against this strategy with or without a permit.
The Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterers Coast Branch urged President Kenyatta and his administration to act fast on insecurity before investor confidence is eroded.
“The situation is slowly getting out of hand and we are concerned, since the bombing of the Paradise Hotel in Kikambala in 2002. Insecurity in the entire Kenyan coast has kept on deteriorating” its chairman Sam Ikwaye said.
“The confidence has gone down tremendously. Even the small investors who want to set up pubs and restaurants are wary of investing,” he said.
He added: “We are slowly drifting to a point of no return; the Government needs to realise that states that have failed started this way.”
