The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has accused former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua of attempting to revive the outlawed Mungiki sect and mobilise criminal groups to intimidate government officials and electoral officers.
Speaking during a security assessment tour of the Kerio Valley in Tiaty, Baringo County, Murkomen claimed Gachagua was mobilising members of the banned group as part of efforts to destabilise the country.
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Murkomen warned that security agencies would not allow criminal gangs to be used to advance political interests, saying authorities would take action against organised groups regardless of their political affiliations.
The Interior CS said the government would begin by targeting gangs he alleged were associated with Gachagua.
His remarks come amid an increasingly bitter political confrontation between the two leaders, which intensified following violence reported during the Ol Kalou parliamentary by-election.
Gachagua accused the government of deploying armed groups and rogue security officers to intimidate voters and opposition supporters during the election. Murkomen has rejected the allegations.
Murkomen maintained that political violence involving criminal groups has existed for years and claimed the current administration was committed to dismantling such networks.
He also accused Gachagua of previously organising criminal groups during his time as Deputy President, alleging that they were involved in attacks against opposition supporters during the 2023 anti-government protests.
The Interior CS further linked individuals he claimed were associated with Gachagua to the invasion of former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Northlands Farm, where property was damaged and livestock stolen.
Murkomen criticised Gachagua’s attacks on the government’s handling of security, accusing the former Deputy President of hypocrisy and questioning his suitability for public office.
He warned that anyone attempting to use criminal gangs for political purposes would face legal action.
Murkomen was speaking in Tiaty after reviewing the security situation in the Kerio Valley and overseeing the launch of Kolowa Sub-County. He was accompanied by Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya, East African Community, ASALs and Regional Development Cabinet Secretary Beatrice Askul, senior security officials and local leaders.
The latest accusations follow Gachagua’s recent claims that Murkomen was responsible for the violence witnessed during the Ol Kalou by-election. Gachagua alleged that the Interior CS authorised the deployment of armed gangs and plainclothes police officers to disrupt the election, though he did not publicly provide evidence to support the claims.
Gachagua also accused Murkomen of presiding over what he termed state-sponsored violence and challenged the CS’s commitment to investigating the incidents.
Murkomen has denied the allegations and maintained that anyone found responsible for violence during the by-election, including security officers who may have acted unlawfully, would be investigated and prosecuted.
Gachagua has likewise denied accusations that he sponsors criminal gangs or militia groups. He has instead accused the government of misusing security agencies and allegedly deploying hired groups against political opponents.
The former Deputy President has vowed to pursue lawful measures to protect his supporters from what he describes as state-sponsored violence.
