Street children in Nakuru want the government to assure them of their security following frequent attacks by unknown people.
They said that they lived in constant fear of being attacked especially after the county government started clearing them from the streets. The kids, who sought anonymity, cited a recent incident where a street kid was found in a market on Sunday morning having died of unknown causes.
“We still are not aware of what killed him. We would like the government to patrol the area and at least try to establish what went wrong,” the source said.
Another street kid said that they had been intimidated and harassed by the police.
“We are now being picked every now and then and dumped into their trucks. They conduct their patrols with us on their vehicles before eventually dumping us,” the source said.
Peninah Nyambura, a counselor in the area, pointed out that majority of the children were now traumatized.
"They are now being picked on suspicion that they are terrorists and incase any attack occurs in the area they are the first targets. They end up being harassed and in some cases killed. An unknown gang has also been harassing them and we call on security organs to ensure they are safe,” she said.