Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo during a past media briefing. [Photo/nation.co.ke]
Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo has lauded Operation Linda Boni, saying it has significantly reduced terrorism attacks in the country.Addressing journalists in his office on Tuesday, Kitiyo said the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) in collaboration with National Police Service and other security agencies carrying out the operation have reduced al-Shabaab attacks in the country by almost 80 per cent.Kitiyo said the officers deserve praise for their fight to flush out the terrorists from the Boni forest in a bid to safeguard the country.“We have really achieved a lot since Operation Linda Boni started two years ago. I can confidently say that the capacity of al-Shabaab to attack in large numbers has been cut by a larger margin. It has reduced by almost 80 per cent. That means we are making reasonable progress,” said Kitiyo, as quoted by the Nation.This comes barely a fortnight after Coast Regional Coordinator Nelson Marwa put KDF soldiers involved in the operation on the spot, accusing them of laxity.He said the operation has not borne the expected fruits, adding that the recent attacks by suspected al-Shabaab militia in Lamu and other parts of the nation are an indication that a lot more needs to be done by the security officers."We have the Operation Linda Boni in place. It is now almost two years and the way things are, it’s like we haven’t achieved the objective of flushing out criminals inside the forest. We need to see changes in as far as the security of this county is concerned or else we replace you guys,” said Marwa. The operation was launched by former Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery in 2015 following the incessant attacks from the militia group with the Garissa University and Westgate Gate attacks being among the most notable incidents.