Governors want security detail of Kingi, Joho reinstated immediately

The Council of Governors has condemned the withdrawal of security detail of Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho and his Kilifi counterpart Amason Jeffa Kingi.

COG chair Peter Munya has called for the reinstatement of the bodyguards attached to the two CORD Governors saying the withdrawal  of  the security  personnel  for the Governors demonstrates a clear conflict between discharge of public duties and fulfillment of personal interests.

In a statement, Munya said the Coast Police Commander has failed to provide satisfactory justification for the abrupt action which he says reveals elements of bad faith and abuse of power.

The move by police comes after Coast Regional Coordinator Nelson Marwa accused the CORD leaders of orchestrating violence during the Malindi by election which the ruling jubilee coalition lost.

On Thursday, Joho claimed that his entire police security detail had been withdrawn, with Kingi saying four of the officers assigned to guard his home had been recalled.

These claims coincided with reports that body guards attached to the two county chiefs stripped a woman accused of voter bribery in Malindi during Monday’s by-election.

Police spokesman Charles Owino, however, said the reduction in the number of police body guards will affect all Governors.

Meanwhile, Joho now says that he will not surrender his firearm as demanded by the national government.

Joho says he legally acquired the firearm even before becoming a Governor adding that the government cannot repossess it without any valid reason considering that he has not misused it for the last 20 years.

Speaking in Mombasa, Joho claimed that he received a call from the Chief Licensing Officer of the Central Firearms Bureau Samuel Kimaru instructing him to surrender the firearm with immediate effect.

Mvita MP Abdhulswamad Nassir, who was also present, said that his only bodyguard was withdrawn by the Government on Friday.