Jobs, scholarships & amnesty: Murkomen’s deal with bandits raises questions

Charles Ouma 08:15 - 26 July 2025

File image of Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen addressing the press after the 20th Jukwaa la Usalama, Elgeyo Marakwet County on July 25, 2025

Murkomen did not share mechanisms put in place to ensure that justice is served to victims as well as how the bandits will be held accountable for their past crimes with some noting the irony that criminals are treated leniently while unarmed citizens are met with lethal force, injuries and deaths during protests

The government has offered a life-changing offer to bandits in Rift Valley and North Eastern parts of the country in which those who surrender their arms will walk away receive scholarships and jobs.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, IG Douglas Kanja and DIG-APS Gilbert Masengeli confirmed the deal during a Jukwaa la Usalama town hall meeting in Elgeyo Marakwet on Friday explained that the plan is part of the government’s initiative to address banditry.

READ: 6 new rules & major changes in upcoming police recruitment

Murkomen explained that bandits who surrender their arms to the police will be treated with leniency and will not only be employed in the affordable housing program but will also receive scholarship to attend technical colleges.

This will equip them with important skills to earn a living as they reintegrate into the society in which they once reigned terror.

Interior CS Murkomen

We are extending an olive branch to all people with firearms and have participated in criminal activities to present themselves before police officers.

I am ready to work with relevant agencies, surrender your gun, we'll take you to a technical college and a construction site to go and build affordable housing instead of engaging in these acts.

READ: Gachagua revisits Murkomen’s appointment & why Ruto did not keep promise to Gen Zs

He warned that those who fail to take advantage of the amnesty will face the full force of the law including numerous casualties, including loss of lives.

But if they continue to engage in banditry, you have no one to blame. I want to ask parents who know their children are engaging in banditry to persuade them to take the safest means.

Justice & accountability: The missing pieces in Murkomen's puzzle

Kenyans who poked holes into the plan, noting that it was not well thought through with some questioning its ability to address banditry while also pointing out missing elements.

For instance, Murkomen's plan failed to address how bandits who surrender will be held accountable for their past crimes.

Murkomen also did not share mechanisms put in place to ensure that justice is served to victims who have suffered in the hands of bandits.

READ: Murkomen says 87% of June 2025 protest victims were police officers

Loss of lives, injuries, destruction of property and stealing often accompanies every raid by bandits, leaving behind traumatised communities with their livelihoods destroyed and plunged into poverty.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen

Treating criminals leniently while using lethal force on unarmed Kenyans

A section of Kenyans also noted that the scheme amounts to rewarding criminals rather than prosecuting them through the courts, contrasting the same with how unarmed Kenyans have been treated with lethal force with some killed or left with injuries during protests.

READ: When are the police allowed to use firearms or force? Unpacking Murkomen's order

Others opined that it could also serve as an incentive to young men to engage in banditry to be eligible for the reward of jobs and scholarships.

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