State House ‘mourns’ slain Yumbis cops as Nkaissery refutes deaths
President Uhuru Kenyatta’s social media team was involved in a toe-curling incident Tuesday morning when they tweeted what appeared to be the head of state’s condolence message to policemen killed in Yumbis by the Al Shabaab, moments before Interior Ministry refuted claims of deaths.
The tweet from Presidential Strategic Communications Unit (PSCU) official handle, which has since been deleted, read:
“I mourn and pray with the family and friends of the police officers who lost their lives in Yumbis. They died protecting us. I salute them.”
But Alinoor (B) Moulid (@AlinoorMB) had already taken a screenshot of the contradictory tweet by PSCU, tweeting:
“While Interior Ministry refutes claims of casualties in #Yumbis attack, the presidency is sending condolences! #Kenya.”
PSCU later retweeted a tweet by @StatehouseKenya that posted an update from Interior Secretary Maj-Gen (Rtd) Joseph Nkaissery, which said: “No one killed in Yumbis – We pray for quick recovery for the injured officer.”
The update by Gen Nkaissery was tweeted by the Interior ministry’s official Twitter handle read: “CS #MajNkaissery confirms that only one officer has been injured in the #YumbisAttack. Cautions media against alshabab propaganda. #SecureKE”
Statehouse Digital Director Dennis Itumbi has since apologized on his personal account.
There conflicting reports on the Monday night attack by Al Shabaab in Yumbis with international media claiming that 25 policemen are confirmed dead while other outlets have reported that 13 officers are missing.
Interior Ministry’s latest update says only one officer has been injured and there are no deaths.