The war against terrorism is painful, expensive and protracted. Even the most powerful nation on earth, the US, is having a difficult time dealing with terrorists. Over the years, it has sent thousands of men and women to combat them wherever they are on the planet. The US, among many other moneyed countries, has also given financial and military assistance to different countries to fight terrorists.
The problem with terrorism is that it is universal and local at the same time. Let me explain. Long before the bombing of the US Embassy in Nairobi in August 1998, most Kenyans never really appreciated the dangers posed by these violent extremists. We always assumed that terrorism affected people thousands of miles from us and we could only empathize with them after watching a one minute news report on our Great Wall televisions.
Since that attack, we have suffered blow after painful blow from extremists who had found a home in the war ravaged Somalia. There was the Kikambala attack, Westgate attack, Mpeketoni attack, Garissa attack among many others that have left us broken and worried. Suddenly, the problem has been localized through the Alshabab.
The Kenya Defense Forces and the National Police Service have over the years come up with units to address this threat. We have even sent thousands of our soldiers to Somalia to combat the extremists and hopefully make it difficult for them to operate. Several towns in Somalia have thus been liberated and their people found some peace. The National Police Service continues to send its officers to patrol our towns and villages in order to keep us safe.
Securing Kenya has been (still is) a demanding job. Many soldiers and police officers have paid the ultimate price, many others have been injured and thousands more spend most of their time on duty. Over the years, we have been increasing budgetary allocation to disciplined forces to combat enemies from within and without. Many attacks have been foiled, many others successfully launched against us.
The spate of attacks has left us wondering: are our concerted efforts bearing any fruit? Are our police and soldiers well equipped, trained and organized to combat terrorists? Listening to the media, one gets the impression that our soldiers and police are not competent enough to handle the threats we face.
I don’t know what level of competence or what type of equipment is needed in this war. I don’t know what kind of training the disciplined forces should undergo or how they should “organize” themselves to win the war. But I know this: these men and women we vilify everyday are giving it their all. They put their lives on the line for people like me. They are making sacrifices that we wouldn’t make, and are ready to pay the ultimate price if it has to come to that.
Maybe they are not properly trained. Maybe they are not competent enough, whatever that means! Maybe they are ill equipped. Maybe… If we sincerely believe this to be the case, why don’t we demand and ensure the government offers them better training and equipments? Why don’t demand that they get better housing, better pay, better insurance cover and better working conditions to boost their morale?
We, the people of Kenya, need to make a paradigm shift in the manner in which we treat men and women who keep us safe. I am not asking us to gloss over the unresolved issues we have, but we stop demonizing the people we hope will keep us safe and instead empower them to do more. Warriors only bring success when they are healthy, well trained, well equipped, well organized, and inspired. They need to know that the village has got their back! Let us not expect to reap where we have not sowed.
We also need to offer timely information to relevant authorities and demonize terrorism and religious extremism. We must also demand of the government to continuously empower marginalized communities as they are often breeding grounds for extremism.
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