Garissa elders urge peace, restraint ahead of 2027 polls amidst rising tensions

Elders representing various communities in Garissa called upon political leaders and youth in the country to exercise restraint and uphold peace ahead of the 2027 General Election.

Led by the Kenya Livestock Marketing Council chairperson, Dubat Amey, who also serves as a community elder, they warned that the violence, accusations and counter accusations witnessed were likely to plunge the country into unrest and further worsen the economy.

"Youth violence stemming from socio-economic grievances was disrupting economic activities. We witnessed infrastructural damages where facilities serving members of the public burnt down, shops and banks were destroyed and looted. This is unfortunate and will deter both domestic and foreign investment," he said.

He emphasised how the volatile environment was likely to be used by politicians to easily escalate into violence.

Dubat expressed concern about how negative publicity and safety concerns were likely to affect the tourism sector, the decline of revenue and job losses that will exacerbate the existing frustrations among the youth.

"Already we are decrying over unemployment and high prices of commodities, violence is not the option to address this predicament, it will further push us to economic hardship," said Dubat.

"This country belongs to us all. Our elders and forefathers invested heavily to bring Kenya to where it is, but we fear selfish political interests may push us sorry situation."

He called upon the youth to express their grievances in a very democratic way, without using violence and destruction as an alternative.

He warned the police against excessive violence and rather humanely to engage the youth.

Elder Dubat stressed how the 2010 Constitution was framed, putting in place institutions that were created to safeguard the interests of Kenyans and restore checks and balances against excessive powers of elected leaders.

Aden Bile, a community elder who also spoke, stressed how a change in leadership can be applied using the constitutional process.

"Situations where youth want to walk to State House to remove the president, and police stations are raided and firearms are stolen are unfortunate," he said.

James Maina, a member of the council of elders, called for unity and restraint, urging police to avoid excessive force.

He called upon Kenyans to remove leaders using the ballot without polarising the country and pushing it to a state of anarchy.

Separately, the Garissa Peace Committee, led by the chairperson Hassan Osman, released a press statement condemning the violence observed during the recent protest.

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"We are advocating for national unity, peace and constitutional order. We wish to condemn the recent wave of lawless demonstrations allegedly orchestrated by a few opposition leaders," he said.

They called upon protesters to be peaceful, guided by the rule of law, without engaging in violence, destruction of property, or disruption of livelihood for innocent Kenyans.

The peace committee said demonstrations are constitutional rights, but must be sanctioned through proper procedures.

They challenged opposition leaders to actively engage in preparing policies that will win the hearts of Kenyans and will help them ascend to power come the 2027 elections.