Nation Team
30 June 2008
Nairobi — Twelve Mombasa councillors were attacked and robbed of personal effects as they held a meeting at the home of their colleague in Nyali estate.
The councillors lost cash, mobile phones and identification cards when the robbers struck on Saturday night.
Nominated
Mombasa police chief Patrick Wafula said Sunday that the robbers raided the home of a nominated councillor, Mr Taufiq Balala, shortly after 9pm.
Mr Balala claimed that the raid was politically motivated as it came at a time when Deputy Prime Minister and Local Government minister Musalia Mudavadi hinted that new councillors would be nominated in Mombasa.
"Since the Deputy Prime Minister announced that he would release a new list of nominated councillors, there has been tension at Town Hall. I think my enemies were plotting to finish me off," Mr Balala said.
In a quick response, mayor Ahmed Abubakar Mohdhar said: "Although I sympathise with Mr Balala for the attack at his home, he is just seeking sympathy as nobody is plotting against him.
"I do not consider the councillor a threat because I beat him in the mayoral polls and will do that again," he said.
In Kipkelion District, eight people were seriously injured at a tea company during an attack by a gang.
One of the victims, Mr Samuel Nyamwaya, said the attackers wanted to know why they had come back after they were displaced.
Meanwhile, a security officer and two villagers were critically injured in a raid on illicit brewers in Nyamira District.
Police officers were forced to shoot in the air several times after villagers pelted them with stones during the raid.
In Kisumu, a suspected carjacker was killed over the weekend after police raided his hideout in Bandani slums.
Two homemade guns and vehicle registration number plates were found.
Stolen rifle
In Kuria West District, a stolen G3 rifle, said to have been stolen by robbers, has not been found.
Earlier, residents had closed their premises when the robbers shot in the air to scare them.
Security officers led by district commissioner Andrew Gitonga visited the town to assess the situation.
According to the district commissioner, preliminary investigations showed the suspects were pursuing a wealthy Tanzanian businessman, who had come to Kenya.
Reported by Mathias Ringa, Sollo Kiragu, Henry Nyarora, Walter Menya and Elisha Otieno
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
