The Kenya Defence Forces have explained the reason why females seeking to join the military were turned away in Lamu County and other parts of the country.
According to Lt-Col Vincent Pera, a senior KDF recruiting officer, there were no vacancies for females from Lamu this year.
"We have left our ladies because we did not have vacancies for them this year. I was here last yearduring the recruitment and we took enough ladies. They should not lose hope because during the next exercise they will definitely be considered," said Lt-Col Pera.
According to the Nation, Pera clarified that the decision not to recruit women does not mean the military does not female soldiers.
He added that the situation was similar in other parts of the country where women were left out for the same reasons as in Lamu.
In Lamu county alone, over 800 women had turned up seeking to serve the military but disappointed to learn that only male candidates were being recruited.
These years exercise target to recruit 2000 soldiers for the next one month.
External bodies are closely following the exercise for incidents over corruption that have characterized previous recruitment.