Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo during a past interview in his office. [Photo/nation.co.ke]
Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo has urged Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the county to go back to their homes as the fight against al-Shabaab militia continues.Addressing journalists on Tuesday, Kitiyo said the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) officers have thoroughly combed through Boni Forest, adding that there is no cause for alarm. More than 2,000 people who fled their homes over increased terror attacks in the region have been living at the Katsaka Kairu and Witu AIC church.The county commissioner assured residents that the government had deployed enough security officers in different areas to restore calm.He, however, said the government is not compelling the IDPs, who are majorly from Maleli, Poromoko, Pandanguo, Jima, Kakathe and Nyongoro villages to go back to their homes.Kitiyo said residents who want to go back home and continue with their normal lives should do so as there was no reason to worry.“We have deployed over 200 KPR officers and enough police officers to all the villages where the IDPs are to return to. The officers will be there permanently just to ensure round the clock surveillance. They shouldn’t worry,” said Kitiyo, as quoted by Baraka FM.Boni Enclave Campaign Director Joseph Kanyiri had earlier said that the operation will continue until all suspected terrorists are flushed out of the area.