Kenya vulnerable to al-Shabaab

THE killing in Mandera county of six security officers and two civilians underlines the perilous security situation in Kenya’s remote and largely neglected regions.

While the focus recently has been on the terrorist threats facing Nairobi and Mombasa, we have neglected a larger swathe of Kenya.

The entire North Eastern region, contiguous counties in the Coast and Eastern regions, and the northern Rift Valley, have, for ages, suffered general neglect.

The residents have been denied access to basic development needs such as education, healthcare, water, electricity and roads.

They have also been condemned to perennial insecurity in the midst of the related scourges of banditry, cattle-rustling, and clan and ethnic warfare.

And now the al-Shabaab menace. As witnessed in Mandera, the terrorists from neighbouring Somalia are taking advantage of the security vacuum to infiltrate deep into the county.

Similar threats apply to Wajir, Garissa and Lamu counties, all of which share long and porous borders with the lawless Somalia.

We will not guarantee peace and security for the capital city and the coastal tourist industry unless we also secure our borders.

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