CS Mutua Condemns Cattle Rustling as Primitive and Barbaric

Labour Cabinet Secretary Dr Alfred Mutua has strongly condemned cattle rustling and inter-community violence. He described these acts as “primitive, idiotic, and barbaric” and said they have no place in modern Kenya.

Mutua made the remarks on Wednesday during a three-day recruitment drive for 4,000 jobs in Mombasa. His statement comes as violence along the Kitui-Garissa border has escalated sharply.

“It is idiotic, it is primitive, it is barbaric for communities to attack other communities,” Mutua said. “For people to go and rape the women of other communities in the name of taking their cattle.”

He singled out recurring hotspots; Baringo, Samburu, Pokot, Kitui, Garissa, and Marsabit.

Additionally, he criticised leaders who incite such violence for political or personal gain.

However, Mutua urged Kenyans to reject incitement. He called on citizens to embrace a forward-looking mindset. Kenya, he noted, has entered a new technological era where young people are unwilling to be used for bloodshed.

“Do not lift a machete or a gun to kill your fellow Kenyan,” he warned.

Furthermore, Mutua praised the William Ruto administration’s efforts to tackle banditry. Yet he stressed that lasting peace needs commitment from both citizens and leaders. He asked politicians to tone down inflammatory rhetoric.

Alfred Mutua’s remarks are timely. In recent weeks, clashes between local farming communities and nomadic camel herders in the Kitui-Garissa region have intensified. The violence has killed at least 15 people, displaced families, destroyed property, and blocked the vital Mwingi-Garissa Road.