The Kenya Navy has come under heavy criticism from Kenyan social media users after reports emerged that an officer from the unit abandoned Kenyan fishermen who had been stranded in the ocean for 17 days.

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It is reported that the fishermen lost course at the ocean after their boat ran out of fuel and they were hit by a heavy storm.

According to the captain of the boat Malik Mbwana, officers from the Navy denied them food and water.

The Kenya Navy is yet to comment on the allegations levelled against it. 

A section of the Kenyans on Twitter registered their disappointment with Kenya Navy citing that as a military unit, they are tasked with not only protecting Kenyans but also helping them out in times of need.

They argued that the incident displayed the opposite of patriotism; a virtue that every military officer is supposed to possess.

A number of the netizens reflected on the incidences where Kenya Navy was on the spot. The naval force was also criticized after it failed to recover the bodies of Mariam Kigeda and her daughter who drowned at the Likoni channel.

The military unit was also on the spot after a youth was shot at its headquarters in Mombasa.

Here are some of the reactions from Twitter;