VDP party leader and former Nyali MP Awiti Bolo at
Mamba Village on Sunday / BRIAN OTIENO
Political leaders must not take advantage of young people’s vulnerability for selfish interests, Vibrant Democratic Party leader Awiti Bolo has said.
Bolo said young people are the backbone of any economy and should be empowered and treated as economic resources, not tools for destruction and selfishness.
“Why would you take someone’s son and make him part of a pressure group? Why don’t you take your own son for that job? That is bad manners,” Bolo said.
Speaking to the Star on Wednesday, the former Nyali MP said many politicians are using youths as goons to intimidate, jeer, heckle or even assault their rivals, creating unnecessary tension in the political arena.
He warned this could lead to heightened political violence across the country ahead of the 2027 General Election.
His remarks came a day after the Independent Police Oversight Authority warned that Kenya risks sliding into instability if leaders fail to tone down inflammatory rhetoric and goonism.
Speaking during a session with the National Assembly Committee on Administration and Internal Security in Mombasa, the authority expressed concern over the growing culture of confrontational politics, inflammatory utterances and the use of hired goons during political gatherings.
The oversight body said the trend is placing immense pressure on security agencies and raising fears of a repeat of election-related violence witnessed during previous political cycles in the country.
IPOA commissioner Jackline Mwenesi said political leaders must take responsibility for the increasingly toxic political environment taking shape across the country.
On Wednesday, Bolo said in any developed and mature nation, politics should unite people, with politicians focusing on policies that improve lives.
“If your style is to use goons, then you are not fit to be a public servant. Everybody is capable of producing goons and creating a pressure group, but some good leaders choose not to go that route for peace’s sake,” Bolo said.
“There is no benefit citizens will get from goonism. You can have your own security people, but use them to bring peace and not cause violence,” the Mombasa politician and businessman said.
Bolo said it does not make sense to organise a rally and then bring goons to heckle at the same event.
He called on security agencies to crack down on politicians using goons for political activities.
“There is always intelligence on who is using goons for political activities. I know our intelligence people are very alert. They know them. Act decisively against them before they lead our youth to bad places,” the former MP said.
He warned that failure to address the issue now would allow the vice to grow and become harder to contain.
“If this issue is not dealt with now, people might think Kenya is a failed state later on,” he said.
However, he expressed optimism that security agencies would move swiftly to address the matter.
He said the 2027 polls will come at a time when Kenya is working towards becoming a first-world country, making the election a major test of the Singapore dream.
Bolo noted that goonism is contagious.
“I am a politician. If I see my rival using goons to stop, intimidate or curtail me, and there are no repercussions, what will stop me from forming my own team of goons?” he said.
