With only 20 days remaining to the general polls in August, the government is getting ready with security units shipping in massive equipment such as crowd-control vehicles, guns and tear gas to deal with any mass protests.
Security agencies have also beefed up training if the ongoing training of personnel in Embakasi is anything to go by.
Early last week, Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet warned those who will engage in violent activities, saying they were ready to deal with such elements.
“We are ready and waiting for you, our forces are ready to ensure there is a peaceful election period,” he said.
Water cannons At least a dozen new South Korean made riot control vehicles arrived in Nairobi at the weekend, increasing to more than 30, and the number of water cannons for police use to quell chaos.
The fleet of new armored vehicles with advanced features is in addition to a new consignment of anti-riot gear including teargas canisters, batons, anti-riot wear and guns that have come through the port of Mombasa.
According to reports, the new anti-riot gear has been distributed to various parts of the country in the past month alone as the government prepare to secure elections and deal with violence should it break out.
Various security units have been training jointly on crowd control and how to crush riots with authorities keen to ensure the killings and destruction witnessed in 2007 doesn’t recur.
The 2007 post elections violence was the darkest moment of the country, where more than 1,000 people were killed in ethnic violence. More than 500,000 were displaced during the chaos.