Caption: Busia County Woman Representative Catherine Omanyo with learners of St Joseph Girls Primary School during the distribution of sanitary towels.
Kenyans are questioning the decision by the UN Security Council to deploy the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission to Haiti, paving the way for countries such as Kenya to send their security personnel to the Caribbean country.
Criticism from a section of Kenyan leaders, with the recent one being Busia woman representative Catherine Omanyo, doesn’t see the reason why police need to go to Haiti yet the security in Kenya is wanting.
According to Catherine Omanyo, the government of Kenya has enough security challenges to address, and sending 1,000 police officers to Haiti to maintain law and order is misadvised.
“People in Haiti live the way they want; the guns and illegal arms are all over in the hands of civilians and sending our sons and daughters to ‘cool’ the situation in Haiti is sending them into a death trap.” She said,
She added, “These are people who have no interest in the government, why send security apparatus there?”
Addressing parents and learners of St Joseph Girls Primary School in Busia, while distributing sanitary towels, the woman representative said there is no need for Kenya to send police officers to Haiti yet cases of insecurity are high, in Kapedo, Baragoi, Turkana, and West Pokot.
“Our own fathers, mothers, sisters, and brothers are being butchered here in Kenya; it is like part of our life. Why should we be planning to go settle the insecurity situation in Haiti yet in Kenya the situation is wanting?”
“The problems in Haiti are facing Kenya in double potion. It is high time for the president to reconsider his decision.”
Earlier on DAP-K party leader Eugene Wamalwa questioned why Kenya has certainly developed an interest in Haiti.
“What interest do we have in Haiti? a third-world country, over 12,000 kilometers away. Many of our officers don’t even understand French, it will be a problem in terms of communication in such a complex security situation full of guns in the hands of civilians.” Said Mr Wamalwa.
President William Ruto said it was a “mission for humanity” in a nation ravaged by colonialism.
On the recent cabinet reshuffle by President William Ruto, Omanyo said it would have been wise for the president to send his cabinet at home for failure to deliver their mandate as expected by Kenyans.
“The other day the president was lamenting the lack of performance from his cabinet saying that he is suffocating because of the bad cabinet, instead of removing them from office, he is transferring them to other departments,” said the woman representative.
She added, “If the cabinet was not performing, they were to be demoted, and taken back for training while others who understand the job take over the responsibilities.”
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