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2017 KENYA ELECTIONS

Poll violence will be met with necessary force, Uhuru warns

The president, who spoke at the funeral of Laikipia Senator G.G Kariuki on Friday, said Kenya cannot afford to have chaos before, during and after the elections and has ordered security forces not to spare anyone/PSCU

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 14 – President Uhuru Kenyatta has warned politicians fomenting violence ahead of next month’s General Election to desist or prepare to face the full force of the law, saying his government will not tolerate impunity.

President Kenyatta who spoke at the funeral of Laikipia Senator G.G Kariuki on Friday, said the country cannot afford to have chaos before, during and after the elections and has ordered security forces not to spare anyone.

“I am issuing a stern warning to those who imagine they have the right to displace some people, kill or to steal other people’s property. Let them know they are dreaming because Kenyans must live in peace,” the President warned.

He has urged Kenyans to cooperate with security forces while emphasising the need for political tolerance across the country.

The Head of State said no violence, not in Laikipia or the other parts country, will occur under his watch.

“We are not saying that we do not have challenges, but a solution cannot be found through threatening your colleague but through dialogue as we were taught by Mzee (GG Kariuki),” he said.

“Let no one think there will be any violence.”

The President was categorical that politicians are always the ones beating the drums of violence, a trend he has vowed to reverse.

“Just like GG Kariuki, leaders should serve all without caring about their ethnicity,” he said.

In the past a few months, Laikipia has witnesses spiralling insecurity, that has seen tens of people killed and property of unknown value destroyed.

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Just this week, six police officers were killed by bandits who ambushed them while on patrol.

Though the violence was initially as a result of prolonged drought resulting in fights over water and pasture, politicians have been accused of having a hand in it.

Deputy President William Ruto described the late Senator as a great leader who served a cosmopolitan county without favouring any specific community.

“When the history of Kenya will be written and it doesn’t have a paragraph about GG, then that history will be incomplete,” the DP stated.

Despite his age, the DP said the late Senator never shied away from serving his constituents regardless of the task.

“He was a special man. It is my prayer that this great Kenyan who has made a huge contribution to our country, that God will favour him with peace and with a place in eternity,” he said.

Baringo County Senator Gideon Moi on his part emphasised the need for all Kenyans to live in harmony saying it is the only way to move forward.

“Our appeal to you… let us stay in peace,” he urged the residents of Laikipia amid increasing tension between communities living in the greater Laikipia region.

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