By Patricia Mollyne Mataga
President Willliam Ruto has yet again come out to defend Kenya’s decision to commit its police officers to a peacekeeping mission in Haiti.
Deployment of the Kenyan police to the Caribbean country has faced opposition from a section of political leaders and activists locally and even at his visit to the United States, the issue still cropped up.
During a question-and-answer session at the White House in Washington DC, the President was yet against asking why it was important for Kenya to send its officers to a country thousands of miles away.
Ayub Abdikadir, a Citizen TV journalist while asking the question wondered why sending police to Haiti was a priority yet the country was still facing banditry in parts of North Rift.
“Is it not an irony when we’re putting a fire away from home when we have fire back at home?” Abdikadir asked.
But in his response, the President said the banditry issue was already being addressed.
He however pointed out that local security challenges have never prevented Kenya from sending out its security personnel to support other nations.
“We have made tremendous progress in making sure that we create security at home but that does not take away our responsibility,” Ruto said, naming the deployment of troops to DRC and Somalia as an example.
“Haiti should not be an exception and that is why deploying 1,000 security men to Hiati speaks to the same belief and commitment to peace and security,” he added.
Kenya offered to lead the peace mission to Haiti which is facing challenges over armed gangs.
The mission which has a huge backing of the United States of America has already been approved by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei earlier this week hinted at when the police officers to Haiti will be deployed.
“That deployment will happen in the next few days, few weeks,” the PS told reporters, shortly before President William Ruto travelled to Washington to meet US counterpart, Joe Biden.