The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), led by Raila Odinga, has asked lawmakers to reject the government’s plan to deploy police officers to Haiti if the matter is brought before the House for approval.
The opposition has also asked President Ruto to reconsider the decision, citing internal security challenges in Sondu, Lamu, and North Rift as well as the potential “disastrous outcome” of such a deployment.
ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna said in a statement that the situation in Haiti poses no immediate threat to Kenya’s national security and questioned why other countries that share borders with the troubled country were unwilling to intervene.
“ODM urges the Ruto regime to reconsider this offer. We call upon Members of Parliament to oppose the deployment of our men and women in uniform to Haiti should the matter be brought before Parliament,” said Mr Sifuna.
“Indeed, given the current security challenges around Sondu, Lamu, the North Rift, along the border with Somalia and within the islands of Lake Victoria, only a truly insensitive and reckless government would deploy 1,000 police officers elsewhere. A poor man’s philanthropy will always raise eyebrows,” he said.
He noted that previous interventions in Haiti by some of the world’s most powerful countries had all ended in disaster.
“There is therefore no gainsaying the fact that the breakdown of law and order, or the instability in Haiti, are not superficial issues that require mere policing. The root causes go deeper than that,” he added.
He questioned the government’s haste in making such a decision without first seeking approval from Parliament.
He stated that the officers’ commitment to Haiti appears to have been made long before approval from the UN and Parliament was sought.
“For some strange reason, the Ruto regime has arbitrarily decided to send, not the military but the police, to Haiti, a country far away on the Western Hemisphere with no strategic geopolitical value to Kenya. In fact, this is not the main worry in this plan shrouded in mystery,” he added.
Following a petition filed by Ekuru Aukot’s Thirdway Alliance Party and others, the High Court on Monday temporarily halted the planned deployment until October 24.
Dr. Aukot and Thirdway Alliance chairperson Miruru Waweu filed the petition last Friday, arguing that Kenya’s Constitution forbids police officers from operating outside of Kenya’s borders.
They have also challenged the move, claiming that no request from the Haitian government has been made. They also claim that the Constitution prohibits the deployment of police officers outside of Kenya and that no cabinet resolution supporting the plan has been issued.
Furthermore, they claim that Kenya has not ratified any law or treaty that would allow police officers to be deployed outside the country.
Dr. Aukot has also criticised President William Ruto for planning to deploy police officers outside of Kenya at a time when security officers have been unable to quell tribal violence in Lamu County, where he claims members of one community have been targeted for death.
