Uhuru calls for sobriety in illicit brew crackdown
President Uhuru Kenyatta has ordered all those involved in the fight against illicit brew to do so in a peaceful and orderly manner.
“Tumwage pombe lakini tusikaribu mali ya watu wengine. Tusichome nyumba za watu. Tunataka kumaliza pombe sio kuharibu mambo ya watu, (We should destroy the illegal brews, but not people’s property. We should also not burn down people’s houses),” the President said.
President Kenyatta was reacting to reports that this campaign has turned violent in some areas, with recent raids at local pubs, health centres and homes of local leaders accompanied by looting and theft of private property.
SECOND GENERATION BREW
Last week the President ordered for the crackdown following a meeting with Central Kenya Members of Parliament at State House.
Since then, large quantities of alcohol, referred to as “second generation” has been destroyed and hundreds of people arrested.
The Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) has also suspended the operations of 385 local alocohol brands, while initial reports from the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (Nacada) suggest that upto 2.5 million people require rehabilitation.