There was drama outside State House in Nairobi when elite police squad confronted a group that tried to breach security there to “meet the president for lunch”.
The group of about 200 consisted mostly youth from slums near Eastleigh, Nairobi.
The rowdy group robbed and harassed motorists and pedestrians outside State House Gate A for several minutes before police arrived to disperse them.
Other police officers had to turn away cars from the scene as the rowdy gang was confronted by among others Recce police officers on Monday March 10 afternoon. The group had trailed a presidential motorcade from Eastleigh to State House for what they termed as lunch.
They hoped to get their lunch from the president or governor Johnson Sakaja or a host of Members of Parliament who were in the entourage.
They rode on motorcycles and others hanged dangerously on vehicles accompanying the president in his tour of the area.
They trailed the motorcade for almost 15 kilometers to outside State House gate where they were intercepted by hawk G Company officials at about 3pm.
The officers had to call for reinforcements to handle the mob which insisted they wanted to get into the State House.
Witnesses said special squad arrived minutes later heavily armed and pushed the group from the gate. By then, many had been robbed near the entrance of the seat of power.
They were pushed back by the police squad and told to go and wait for whoever they had an appointment with elsewhere. The group moved to a nearby petrol station where they waited for an hour before leaving after being “sorted” out.
By then 12 of them had been arrested but later released.
“The elite security team acted swiftly, preventing any unauthorized access to the highly protected premises. They wanted to even break in saying they were hungry but retreated when more officers arrived,” said a witness.
Security agencies have assured the public that there was no immediate threat and that measures remain in place to safeguard the country’s most critical installations.
Ruto has commenced a tour of the city and officials said the events of Monday gave an indication of what to expect in the coming days.
He is expected to visit Mathare and Kasarani on Tuesday March 11.
Security officials said they have enhanced their operations to tame such an occurrence.
This includes increasing of the personnel to accompany the president and his team.
Earlier on, some of those in the tour had complained of being harassed by the goons. They demanded money and other valuables.
“You will see more personnel on the ground,” said an officer aware of the plans.
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