Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka has demanded answers from President William Ruto and Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen following a bandit attack that left seven people dead in Kwa Kamari Trading Centre.
In a statement on Sunday, April 26, Kalonzo said the attack happened at about 2.00 p.m. on Saturday, April 25, when around 40 heavily armed bandits stormed the trading centre in Tseikuru and opened fire on residents.
As a result, six men and one woman were killed, while one survivor remains in the hospital.
Kalonzo said the killings marked a historic security breakdown in the region and directly blamed the government for failing to protect citizens.
"This attack has been described as the deadliest banditry incident in the region in forty years. Wazalendo wenzangu, let that sink in. Four decades have passed without carnage of this scale in Tseikuru until yesterday, under the watch of President William Samoei Ruto. I demand answers, and I demand them now," he said.
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Kalonzo questioned how the attackers obtained sophisticated weapons and moved across counties undetected.
"To President Ruto: how do pastoralists come to possess automatic rifles capable of massacring seven Kenyans within minutes? Who armed them? Who allowed them to move freely across county borders carrying weapons of war?
"The assailants reportedly arrived in two unmarked vehicles. This was not a spontaneous act. It was organised, coordinated, and executed with military precision against a civilian population. Where was your intelligence? Where was your security apparatus?" he posed.
Kalonzo also turned his criticism toward Murkomen, saying warnings about insecurity in the area had been ignored.
"To Cabinet Secretary for Interior, Kipchumba Murkomen: you are constitutionally charged with the security of every Kenyan, from Moyale to Mombasa, from Elgeyo Marakwet to Busia, from Sugoi to Tseikuru. The attackers, believed to be members of a pastoralist community, had earlier encroached illegally into the Mwingi North Game Reserve.
"Their presence was known. Their encroachment was reported. The tension was documented. So I ask you directly, CS Murkomen: why were armed men allowed to move freely through Kitui County carrying AK-47 rifles, while the people of Tseikuru had nothing but their bare hands?" he asked.
Kalonzo said the latest killings were part of a long-running crisis affecting several areas in Kitui County, forcing school closures and displacing residents.
"This is not the first time Tseikuru has bled. Over the years, thousands of armed pastoralists have migrated into Tseikuru, Kyuso, Malalani, Twambui, and surrounding areas, forcing school closures and displacing residents. This regime has consistently failed to respond with any decisive, lasting action.
"The blood of these seven Kenyans is not only on the hands of their killers. It is also on the hands of a government that has turned away from the suffering of the people of Ukambani," he stated.
Kalonzo called for urgent police action, investigations, and disarmament operations in the affected region.
"I call upon the Inspector General of Police to immediately deploy adequate security personnel to Tseikuru and the wider Mwingi North region. I further call for a full criminal investigation and for the arrest and prosecution of every individual involved in this massacre.
"Additionally, I demand the immediate disarmament of all illegal firearms across Kitui County and the surrounding region, without fear or favour," he further said.
Kalonzo also sent condolences to the bereaved families and vowed to pursue justice.
"To the families of the seven Kenyans killed yesterday, mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters cut down in a marketplace in the afternoon sun, I grieve with you and stand with you. I give you my word that their deaths will not be buried under the weight of political convenience," he concluded.
Earlier Sunday, the National Police Service said the attack happened on Saturday, April 25, with all those killed believed to be from the Kamba community.
The police linked the killings to a series of retaliatory attacks between members of the Kamba and Somali communities.
"The National Police Service is deeply perturbed by deaths reported at Tseikuru Sub-county, Kitui County, as reported yesterday evening. A chronology of criminal attacks below points to a pattern of retaliatory attacks involving two communities-the Kamba and the Somali-which must not only be condemned but also stopped immediately," the statement read.
NPS also gave details of earlier incidents that may have triggered the latest violence.
"On 29th March 2026, a 44-year-old Kamba herdsman was killed near Mwingi Game Reserve. The following day, 30th March 2026, a suspected retaliatory attack left four members of the Somali community dead," the statement added.
In their statement, NPS said they strongly condemned the latest killings and confirmed senior officers had been deployed to the area.
"The Service takes great exception to such senseless and needless loss of life, which must be stopped immediately. The Inspector General of the National Police Service (IG-NPS), Douglas Kanja, has already dispatched a high-powered security team led by Eliud Lagat, the Deputy Inspector General of the Kenya Police Service (DIG-KPS), who is already on the ground this morning at Kwa Kamari, Tseikuru," the statement continued.
NPS added that more officers were being sent to contain the situation and investigate the attacks.
"Reinforcements are also being dispatched to the area. The whole aspect of these attacks will be investigated exhaustively and to a logical conclusion," the statement noted.
NPS urged residents to remain calm and called on local leaders to promote peace as investigations continue.
"The NPS will take all necessary measures to combat this violence and calls for calm and restraint from both communities. Community leaders are also reminded to speak the language of peace and reconciliation as criminal culpability and ultimate justice are pursued," the statement concluded.
