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A year of grief for Suneka residents
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- Published on Friday, 09 November 2007 06:45
The chiefs successfully sold the idea to a group of businessmen in Kisii town, who in turn offered to convince senior administration officials to back it, and even help in implementing it. They did this successfully. On May 19, just when the Kisungu sungu was in its formative stages, a robbery incident occurred in the home of an individual, who was known to be very close to one of the chiefs.
Kisungu sungu raided the home of one of the men accused of being behind the robbery, killed his brother, raped women, burned houses and slashed livestock with machetes. They then moved to the neighbouring Bomorenda Location, where they killed two people.
After the operation, in which six people were murdered, a top hotelier in Kisii town is said to have organised a meeting with the two chiefs and other senior administration officials, where Kisungu sungu was given the official nod and promised the support of security agents. The chiefs were allowed to go ahead and recruit young men into the group, paving the way for the formation of what is today a powerful and untouchable gang.
Four chiefs in Bonchari were opposed to the idea of forming vigilante groups to do the work of the police, but Kisungu Sungu was okayed all the same. To this day, Kisungu Sungu has not spread to the rest of Bonchari, but has entrenched itself in Suneka.
Its formation led to a conflict between local chiefs. "The four chiefs complained that Kisungu sungu was becoming a security threat because it abducted people and murdered them in cold blood," said our source. The leaders cited an incident where someone was abducted from Bomachoge constituency and brutally murdered in Iyabe sub-location in June last year. They argued that Bomachoge, which is home to the dreaded Chinkororo militia group, might have wanted to revenge and this could have led to deadly inter-clan wars.
They also cited another incident in which a man was abducted from Bobasi and murdered in Bonchari. Their argument was that Bonchari was courting hostility with the neighbouring constituencies, something that could lead to bloodshed.
But their biggest concern was that security agents in the district were supporting the group. Their concerns were ignored, and at around that time, politicians met the leaders of the group and assured them of support. According to the residents, anyone who has tried to stand on the gang’s way has been silenced. Any attempts to get information to higher authorities is frustrated by administrators, who mislead the Provincial Commissioner in Kisumu. Residents say in spite of the bad things associated with the group, young men are not given the option of deciding whether or not they want to be part of it because they are recruited by force.
Those who decline are beaten badly after which they are fined Sh300 for every operation in which they fail to participate. They are then given another chance to join, but this time failure to comply could mean death. The group holds daily meetings at night, either by the roadside or in a school. They discuss various issues, including a review of the latest operations. Those who escaped before coming up with a fresh list of targets are also discussed. "They even discuss what they would do with each of the people on the list when they finally get hold of him," said a source.
The group then carries out a mock operation on the next target. The group is fairly well organised. On the ground, of course, there are the young men who do the dirty job of flashing out victims and administering the cruel punishment. They are answerable to the headmen — each headman leads a squad of up to 50 members. The headmen report to chiefs, who are in turn answerable to a team of businessmen, the key financiers. It is these businessmen who serve as the link with the administration and the District Security Committee.
Victims of the group — those whose family members have been killed — say they have reported such incidents to the police, and even given names of the culprits — but nothing has been done. "Those who have tried to make such reports have ended up being cautioned, killed or even arrested and framed up with either murder or robbery with violence," said a source.
