Chief of Defence Forces General Samson Mwathethe appealed to soldiers at the Kudhey camp in Somalia to uphold the values and convictions Kenya holds dear even into the festivities.
Visiting Kudhey for the very first time, Mwathethe urged the soldiers at the camp to stay vigilant to ward off Al-Shabaab elements who may want to disrupt peace in the region.
The army chief also delivered President Kenyatta’s goodwill messages to the troops in Somalia, urging them to enjoy the holidays full aware of the immense responsibility they have towards Kenya.
“When Somalia is peaceful, we are guaranteed of peace in Kenya as well,” said General Mwathethe.
Chief of Defence Forces Maj.Gen. Samsom Mwathethe pays a visit to the Kenyan troops at Kudhey in Somalia pic.twitter.com/Ch5qIeRzys
— Daily Nation (@dailynation) December 22, 2019
Mwathethe who has been in the army since 1978 and has risen through the ranks to hold the highest military position in the land.
The army general has also served as a Chief of Systems Procurement at the Ministry of Defense as well as Navy Commander and a base commander at the Mtongwe Naval base.
Former President Mwai Kibaki led an incursion into Somalia in 2011 after frequent attacks rocked the country.
While the incursion is widely seen to have slowed down the attacks, Kenya has experienced sporadic attacks by the militants with the latest incident happening in a bus.
Non-locals travelling in the bus were separated before being summarily executed. Majority of those killed were identified as police officers heading back for duty after a break.