This archive report was first published on 8 November 2019.
Embu MCAs Clash with Police Over Corruption ¶
On Thursday, November 8, 2019, Embu County witnessed a tense standoff between Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) and the police, as the MCAs attempted to flush out officials accused of corruption.
The MCAs, who had passed a motion barring the county government from collecting revenue from business people, took to the streets and were met with riot police. The situation escalated into running battles, with scores of demonstrators injured.
Deputy Minority Leader Newton Kariuki had moved the motion, citing Governor Martin Wambora's administration's failure to sack officers accused of corruption. The MCAs insisted that services by the county government should be grounded until the governor implements the resolution.
During the protests, some MCAs were manhandled by the riot police, but vowed that no amount of intimidation would deter them from calling for the removal of dishonest officials.
"We are going piling pressure on Governor Wambora until he bows to our demands. Our hospitals have no enough drugs while various development projects have halted because some officials are busy looting taxpayers' money. This is unacceptable," said Ruguru Ngandori MCA Muturi Mwombo.
The MCAs accused the police of using excessive force and called for government intervention, including a major reshuffle of the officers involved.
