NYANDARUA, Kenya, Nov 2 – Police in Nyahururu town on Monday impounded and destroyed at least 5,000 liters of illicit brew across various villages.
Local administrators revealed that ‘kingara’ a local illicit brew had infiltrated several villages in the town.
According to Nyahururu Division Assistant County Commissioner Vicky Munyasia, the new wave is linked to a wanted brewer who had recently been flushed out of Thompson Falls.
The operation was conducted by several police officers and chiefs that are part of a multi-agency effort to arrest brewers of the illicit brew while sensitizing residents of the danger it poses to their health.
“They prepare this brew using chick mash and rotten maize which is a great threat to the health of the users,” said Munyasia.
Local administrators had received a tip-off from members of the public on the suspected hideout.
No one was arrested during the operation.
Last month, the government declared a nationwide crackdown against illicit alcohol and other substances in the build-up to the general election.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr. Fred Matiang’i said the intensified campaign will target the proliferation of cheap and illegal liquor whose supply and consumption tend to rise sharply towards the general elections.
Addressing Regional and County Commissioners who are expected to spearhead the crackdown in their respective jurisdictions, Dr. Matiang’i said the supply of illegal alcohol, if unchecked, posed serious public health and safety challenges to a system that is already reeling from the strain of the Covid pandemic.
The operation is being undertaken under the Rapid Results Initiative (RRI).
“We have a serious challenge of alcohol abuse aggravated by the season of elections. Some people imagine it is time to provide cheap liquor to enable campaigns. In some cases, this trend is chronic. This RRI couldn’t have come at a better time. Let’s go out and wage a vicious campaign,” he said.
The CS also urged national government administrators to lead by example and warned that those struggling with alcohol and substance addiction will be sacked.
“We must be candid enough to admit we have a problem from within. If you’re a drunken officer who is wobbling in public barazas, how will you implement the RRI? How can you enforce the law when you are supposed to be in a rehab centre?” he posed.
Dr. Matiang’i cautioned Government officials against abetting the sale of counterfeit and illegal substances and warned that such officers also risked disciplinary action including sacking.
The CS faulted county governments liquor licensing policies saying there was a strong link between their hunger for more revenue from alcohol outlets and the proliferation of trade and consumption of illicit substances.
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