Muhoroni Sub-County Deputy County Commissioner (DCC) Abdihakim Jubat has declared war and mounted swoops to get rid of illicit brews and drug dens across the Sub-County.
Jubat directed Chiefs and their assistants to champion initiatives to flush out notorious illicit brewers by closing down drinking dens in all the locations and sub locations.
Speaking during a public engagement forum at Nyang’oma Chief’s Camp Monday, Jubat issued a two months ultimatum to ensure the campaign against illicit brew succeeds in Muhoroni Sub-County.
“We agreed that all Chiefs and Assistant chiefs must fight the brewing, sale and consumption of illicit alcohol in areas of their jurisdiction,” he said.
He expressed optimism on the progress to ensure every location and sub location is declared illicit brew free by the end of the year.
Jubat admitted that the network of Chiefs, Assistant Chiefs as well as the village elders is impressive in efforts to eliminate illicit brew and drug substance abuse.
“The local administrators are doing a great job so far at the grassroots and we are hopeful to declare Muhoroni Sub-County an illicit brew free zone in the coming days,” Jubat assured.
“Wherever the sale or brewing of illicit alcohol is happening, it means the chief or their assistants have allowed it to continue,” the DCC asserted.
He cautioned that Chiefs and Assistant chiefs who fail to act would be dismissed, adding that, “We can’t tolerate a drinking community.”
Speaking at the same event, the area Member of Parliament James Koyoo decried the rise in illicit brew trade in the area, lauding the DCC’s efforts to reign in the perpetrators.
Koyoo expressed concern over the widespread consumption of homemade brews, particularly chang’aa, which has become increasingly common in the North East Kano location in Masogo/Nyangoma ward.
“We have some notorious brewers in Ng’ech area, especially in North East Kano and other areas, with well-known dens supplying large quantities of chang’aa to external buyers,” he said.
The legislator cautioned notorious government officials and police officers who are abetting the proliferation of drugs and illicit alcohol in Muhoroni, asserting that their days are numbered.
He noted that the DCC has a strong agenda aimed at combating illicit brews in the area, adding that the issue would soon be a thing of the past.
According to the latest statistics from the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA), the current alcohol use prevalence in the Nyanza region is 6.3 percent, against a national average of 11.8 percent.
by Robert Ojwang’
