Mpeketoni Terror Decree: Who is killing people in Lamu?
Francis Omondi is a priest in the ACK…
How are we to understand what happened in Mpeketoni? Was it a terrorist attack? Was it a local political dispute? Kenyans need to weigh the claims and counter claims carefully. President Uhuru Kenyatta said on Tuesday: “the two attacks in Mpeketoni were politically orchestrated.” He thus exonerated Al Shaabab terrorists, but to deny they are the perpetrators when they have already claimed responsibility, raises huge questions. Is the President trying to use this tragedy for his own purposes?
On February 27, 1933, the German Reichstag (Parliament) was set on fire. To this day no-one is absolutely sure who did the deed, but the public was led to believe that it was an act of Communists plotting against the government of Adolph Hitler who had been in power only a month. The event became pivotal in the establishment of Nazi Germany. Hitler used it as a pretext to persuade President Paul von Hindenburg to pass an emergency decree to suspend civil liberties. Is there a danger of a repeat of something similar here in Kenya in 2014?
The President in effect pointed an accusing finger at political leaders who have heightened political tension in the country and vowed that the Jubilee administration will not tolerate “hate mongers, reckless leaders and negative propagandists”.
“The attack in Lamu was well planned, orchestrated and politically motivated ethnic violence against a Kenyan community, with the intention of profiling and evicting them for political reasons. This, therefore, was not an Al Shabaab terrorist attack,” the president further said.
In his televised address, President Kenyatta admitted, “that intelligence on the Mpeketoni attack was made available to the Lamu security team in advance but they ignored it.” Why then blame it on politicians? How can he absolve himself and the security team in the region and the country from blame? Why did they not deal with them and present the evidence to Kenyans of his claim?
We now know that the Somali-based Al Shaabab terrorists, who have links with Al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for both attacks through their radio Aladus. Eyewitnesses and survivors have also claimed that these attackers were from Al Shabaab. It is very possible that this could be so judging from the proximity of the town to the Boni forest. Where does the notion that ‘“Evidence indicates that local political networks were involved in the planning and execution of the heinous attacks. This also played into the opportunist networks of other criminal gangs,”as the President said’ come from ?
Let’s assume that it’s political, why did the President and the security council who were duly warned of the impending attack fail to counter it? Mpeketoni has a police station. Yet they melted away. The OCPD and County command office is 24 km away. They never responded to the SOS. In fact there was no SOS. Witu has a police station. All these have vowed to protect Kenyans. So why were they not mobilised? If they could not cope, why not deploy the army who were 35 km away at Baragoi camp? Who silenced the guns of Kenya’s government forces against the aggressor?
One cannot help but to make inferences to the German parliament (Reichstag) building being burned down due to arson. The government portrayed the fire as part of a Communist effort to overthrow the state.
A decree for the ‘Protection of the German People’ had been made on February 4, 1933 using emergency constitutional powers, but this was not enough for Adolf Hitler, since this decree only placed constraints on the press and authorized the police to ban political meetings and marches. They craved for a more dramatic and permanent suspension of civil rights this was occasioned by the February 27 burning of the parliament building.
The unclear circumstances of the fire gave room for a propaganda maneuver, the coalition government (Nazis and the German Nationalist People’s Party) blamed the Communists. They exploited the Reichstag fire to secure an approval for an emergency decree, of February 28. The Reichstag Fire Decree as it became popularly known, suspended the right to assembly, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and other constitutional protections, including all restraints on police investigations.
I wish to be wrong on this but all indications are pointing the Reichstag decree way for the Jubilee administration. They wanted and excuse to clampdown on the irritant CORD and that they got it in the Mpeketoni massacre. There is little correlation between terror attacks and the rallies held so far. The opposition feel they have a cause to continue on this trail while the Jubilee administration will have none of it! Is this then a move to suspend the freedoms picketing and challenging errors of the government?
Rev. Canon Francis Omondi
All saints Cathedral Diocese
Nairobi
Michael
You are propagating one of the conspiracy theories being peddled. from media reports, the terrorists, whoever they are, targeted only men and from communities with upcountry origin. That is not in keeping with Al shabaab modus operadi. They kill wll & sundry. If I was an investigator, I would start investigations with possible MRC links.
Government failures is not secret and the president acknowledged so.
Though I also don’t at the moment see any correlation between CORD meetings & the massacre, the pronouncements in those meetings as relayed through the media have been inciteful, arrogant, disrespecful of state institutions, divisive &uncalled for.
All of us Kenyans need to arise above the political rhetoric and keep the peace.
waanglicana
Micheal you seem to miss my point here by a mile. Irrespective of who carried the massacre my question was , why were the guns silent? Why could we even just warn them ku jipanga to protect themselves? When the army camp was just near by why would they harm Kenyans for 7 hours and follow up the following day ? I have colleagues in the area and been answering distress call all these days. Whether MRC or al shabaab no one benefits to hide but alshabaab has claimed responsibility. What was the eyewitness account did somali join MRC ? I do not intend to spread conspiracies but would like to use the evidence presented to ponder if possible pray that we do not let lose the security rope!
George Ogalo
Rev, you have asked genuine questions. But at the moment, majority of us are wearing specialized lenses for interpreting your questions. Our president did not only express opinion, he expressed some emotion. We all need to cool down, especially the president needs to cool down because an angry king can make decisions that have devastating and self-destructive effects. It is great CORD is making a positive tactical move with regard to its rallies. May the government also make some move that is good for Kenya. We should be sad about the seeds of discord being entrenched by the political class. As for who killed Kenyans, God’s creation, our brothers, the truth will not hide forever, if at all there is dispute that Alshaabab are innocent. Peace to the nation.
margaret auma
prayers for wisdom for our leaders, God to seriously intervene here.Where are courageous christian leaders to talk out? we have to remain on our knees but we cant assume the truth anyway, kenya needs God’s intervention but somebody has to talk the truth and remain on his/her knees.
Daniel Kinyuru Ojuka
This is not the first time i am hearing this, i heard that the guys want us back to nyayo days when the presidency was everything, the best way is to cause terror so that Kenyans will easily give them the power they want. I was told it is only unfortunate that many Kenyans may die in the process
Jotham Kilimo
I don’t quite agree with the German analogy hence do not think we are headed for emergency rule. The Lamu massacre is very sad, especially because the government guns ‘were silenced’ as you put it. If it is true there was intelligence reports on the impending attack (which local security chiefs ignored), then why are people surprised when the President states the attack was politically engineered? After all, he has the intelligence reports, which other people do not have. The only reason the President’s statement is opposed is because Al Shabaab ‘claimed responsibility’. Who would you rather believe? The only problem I have with the President’s statement is that it had the potential to raise the political and ethnic temperature, but I have no grounds to doubt the information he has.
waanglicana
Your point is valid. Jotham… On the identity of the attackers and the grand mullah also points to the same reasoning as my friend Mike sometime back. It was our president who said that they had information of the attack that raises the huge concern as to why this was not dealt with whether the attack was as a consequence of polictical or terrorism activity. There is huge correlation between the speed with which the state has moved to link the rallies to this attacks and calling for control for reducing of rights for peace sake. The use of the analogy is an inference that is warning us not to rule that out ! It’s probable !