Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has declared that the government will invoke the Protected Areas Act to address the issue of individuals vandalizing the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) and selling its components to scrap metal dealers.
Speaking on Monday in Makueni during the operationalization of Kambu Sub-County, Kindiki likened the act of vandalizing railway lines to an act of terrorism. He emphasized that such actions pose a significant threat to national security, have the potential to harm the country’s economy, and could lead to mass casualties.
Kindiki stated that the same legal measures would be applied to safeguard dams and other crucial water bodies. He highlighted the relevance of the Protected Areas Act (Cap 204 of the laws of Kenya) in governing critical infrastructure, emphasizing its serious and punitive nature in guarding against security threats.
“The law governing critical infrastructure now is the Protected Areas Act. Any person found within the vicinity of a protected facility, including the railway and critical water reservoirs, will be dealt with according to the Protected Areas Act. That is the most serious and the most punitive law that guards State House,” he warned.
The Interior CS issued a stern warning to individuals involved in railway vandalism, stressing that compromising national security would be met with decisive and impartial action. Kindiki urged security agencies from various units to collaborate with the Railway Police Unit to ensure the country’s railway remains free from vandalism.
Kindiki asserted that the government would not permit nefarious individuals, including terrorists, to exploit vandalism to cause harm to the people of Kenya. He reiterated that the law empowers law enforcement officers to take decisive action against anyone found committing crimes within protected areas.
“Leave the railways alone, leave the critical infrastructure alone; those are national security assets important for the security of our nation,” he cautioned.
