KITALE, Kenya – Armed police officers on Monday morning raided the Kitale home of Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya, triggering a standoff that drew a crowd and sparked political outcry.
The officers, who backed a team from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in Nairobi, reportedly arrived with a search warrant to enter the governor’s Milimani residence and question him.
Tension quickly escalated as a crowd gathered outside the compound. Police moved in to disperse them.
Sources say the raid is linked to an ongoing EACC investigation into Natembeya, though the details of the probe remain unclear.
It follows warnings from opposition leaders who, just a day earlier, alleged a plot was underway to arrest the governor.
Natembeya, a vocal critic of the Kenya Kwanza administration, has increasingly positioned himself as a thorn in the government’s side — a stance that many see as the real trigger behind the Monday operation.
His party, DAP-K, condemned the raid in a strongly worded statement on social media, accusing state agencies of being used to settle political scores.
“A heavy contingent of police officers in plain clothes, well-masked, have gained access to Governor George Natembeya’s Milimani home in Kitale. Such Moi tactics won’t work in current times,” the party said, invoking the repressive crackdowns of the former regime.
“The weaponisation of independent offices to frustrate and humiliate those with alternative political stands shall be met with full resistance by the people,” the statement continued. “The plans to arrest DPL Governor George Natembeya over his people-centric stance under TAWE shall not be allowed.”
Natembeya’s TAWE movement, which champions what he calls a “people-first” agenda, has gained popularity in parts of western Kenya and drawn the ire of ruling party loyalists.
