The Cutting Edge
What you need to know:
- The police have simply lost it, remarks Mbiri Gikonyo, in reaction to the Mandera massacre in which nearly 30 Kenyans perished at the hands of Al-Shabaab murderers from across the border.
AMICABLE SOLUTION. Freedom of worship, as enshrined in the Constitution, applies equally to all religious denominations, but where a real threat to national security is evident, the government must take firm and decisive action, says Frederick Aloo, alluding to police claims of firearms allegedly found during recent raids on Mombasa mosques. In the 1980s, he recalls, police would pursue protesters to All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi and the matter was later amicably solved. Over to the imams and other Muslim leaders. His contact is [email protected].
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DOING THE RIGHT THING. The top national electoral commission and examination council officials named in a UK court in what has come to be known us the “chicken-eating” scandal should immediately step down to pave the way for investigations by the anti-corruption authorities, in liaison with the British prosecutors, says Ken Butiko. It will be in their own interest, he adds, to have their names cleared in order to restore public confidence in them as holders of such vital public offices. His contact is [email protected].
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WHAT A SHAME! On the alleged graft in Knec, as detailed in the evidence adduced in the UK trial of the managers of a printing firm said to have paid hefty bribes to Kenyan officials, John Nyaga says that “with an appropriate ‘chicken’, one can have the examination results of a rival school or selected students cancelled to relay whatever message the ‘chicken’ donor would wish to pass on to its targets”. According to him, it is “despicable and a miracle that the Knec still maintains a semblance of normality”. His contact is [email protected].
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TRAGEDY OF CLUELESS POLICE. The police have simply lost it, remarks Mbiri Gikonyo, in reaction to the Mandera massacre in which nearly 30 Kenyans perished at the hands of Al-Shabaab murderers from across the border. “The police simply have no clue; no idea what to do,” he adds, rejecting the suggestion that the first people to be interviewed in Nairobi will be the owners of the bus that was attacked in Mandera. “They can as well go for the bus manufacturers,” quips Mbiri, whose contact is [email protected].
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SHORT MEMORY. This is a country of rhetoric and knee-jerk reactions, remarks Anthony Irungu, after seeing “government officials who have failed the nation reading ill-prepared statements” on a tragedy such as the Mandera massacre. It is a pity, he adds, that no leader has ever taken responsibility for such failures. “After a few days, we have moved on. The zeal fizzles out and we go back to slumber land until the next terror attack. Why can’t the government ensure security around the clock by intelligence gathering?” His contact is [email protected].
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TROUBLE AT HOME. The irony of the Kenya Defence Forces’ successful campaign in Somalia is that as they have secured the port town of Kismayu and continue to protect Somalis against their own militants, Al-Shabaab’s forays into “our country to slaughter innocents” have increased, moans Dave Tumbula. “I may not be a military tactician, but why not retreat from Kismayu and build a buffer zone at the border inside Somalia after destroying all the militants’ bases? And the military intelligence should then man the border crossing 24/7.”
Have a tactical day, won’t you!
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