Fred Matiang'i extends Mt Elgon curfew by one month

The government has extended by a month the dusk to dawn curfew imposed in Mt Elgon, Bungoma County in the wake of attacks on villagers by a killer gang.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i said security officials had arrested three suspects, chief among them the gang’s leader Timothy Kiptanui Kitai alias Chaparkach and two others.

The suspects were charged in Bungoma court last week with several counts of murder.

Mr Matiang’i, who spoke after meeting security chiefs from Western region on Wednesday, said security officers would continue with a manhunt for other suspected members of the criminal gang.

“We are not done with the curfew. We don’t want to rush with actions that will again come back to haunt us. We want to ensure there is total peace in the area as a measure of our success,” the CS said.

Mr Matiang’i said security had been restored in Mt Elgon and residents were going about their activities without fear of attacks on their homes by the criminal gang.

“Officers deployed to Mt Elgon have intensified patrols and helped secure the region from night attacks and restored peace,” said Dr Matiang’i.

Politicians from Bungoma County have been piling pressure on the government to lift a three-month curfew imposed in the region over insecurity.

Mt Elgon MP Fred Kapondi and ward representatives from the region had asked Mr Matiang’i to lift the curfew after key suspects were arrested.

GAMBLING

The CS further ordered a fresh crackdown on unlawful gambling and the sale and consumption of illicit brews.

He gave firm instructions to security officers to raid premises and confiscate unlicensed gambling machines.

“The crackdown on gambling will proceed and those arrested will be prosecuted. We are not going back on this, and there will no negotiations,” said Mr Matiang’i.

The CS was accompanied by western region commissioner Ms Ann Ng’etich.

SEXUAL ABUSE

The administrator said local administration officials had been asked to tackle the upsurge in defilement cases in the region.

She said it was shocking that suspects involved in the abuse of children managed to escape punishment because of lack of proper investigations.

Mr Matiang'i warned chiefs against negotiating with perpetrators of sexual offences and agreeing to settle such cases out of court.

He warned that chiefs who fail to arrests sexual violence offenders would face the sack.