Government declares war on drugs cartels cultivating bhang in Mt. Kenya Forest

Samuel Waitiu (KNA)

The Government has declared war on drug cartels especially those involved in planting bhang within Mt. Kenya Forest.

Interior Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kipchumba Murkomen said the vice is thriving deep within the government forest typically reserved for wildlife and biodiversity conservation.

He said clandestine narcotics farms have affected Meru, Tharaka Nithi and Embu counties that form part of the upper eastern region.

“This is a matter that has become of grave concern to the security apparatus, and we must move with speed to smash the trade,” he said.

Speaking in Embu town during the Jukwaa La Usalama, Upper Eastern Edition, CS Murkomen said the ministry is working closely with Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to eradicate the vice.

“We have asked security teams in the three counties to work together with KFS to ensure criminals using the forest to plant those dangerous plants are apprehended and dealt with,” he stated.

The CS said also on top of their agenda was war on second generation and illicit brews whose production, sale and consumption were on the rise in the region.

The CS said despite the existence of robust legal, regulatory and administrative framework, illicit liquor is still a persistent challenge for the government.

This, he said, calls for a change in approach as the menace cannot be dealt with by the security sector alone.

He said the issue requires cooperation and support from the local community to ensure it is wiped out completely.

“Part of the approach we want to adopt is leveraging community support if we are going to succeed in this war,” the CS said.

He said the fight must start right at the sub-location level by sensitizing members of the public on their role in the war including carrying out citizen arrest of culprits and presenting them to authorities.

He also appealed to political leadership not to undermine efforts by interfering with arrests and prosecution of manufacturers and distributors.

“In some instances, we have witnessed leaders interfering with enforcement through calls, organization of protest or harassment of police officers or local administrators,” he said.

Additionally, the CS complained that some of their officers are undermining the war by abetting illicit liquor business.

“I want to categorically state that every public officer who involves himself in any kind of criminal activity will not get any kind of support from the ministry but rather carry his/her cross,” he said.

Ends