Garissa leaders urge parents to protect children from crime

Parents in Garissa have been urged to play a more active role in guiding their children amid growing concerns over youth involvement in criminal activities across the county.

Garissa County Police Commander Moses Ambasa warned that the region was witnessing a troubling rise in crimes perpetrated by young people, adding that policing efforts alone cannot provide a lasting solution.

“We cannot fight crime through arrests alone. The foundation must start at home,” Ambasa told local leaders and residents gathered at the Garissa Assembly Headquarters.

Commissioner Ambasa said the police service was open to working with youth groups and community-based organizations to create outreach programs to help discourage crime and also build trust between young people and law enforcement.

“Parents should closely monitor their children’s behavior, their friends, and the activities they engage in. That is where prevention begins.”

Commissioner Ambasa said youth in the county were increasingly being lured into criminal networks ranging from petty theft to organized gang activity, often as a result of idleness, peer pressure, and economic hardship.

Senior Principal Chief Yussuf Ali Abdi urged families to instill values of discipline, morality, and responsibility in their children.

He stressed that community guidance was just as critical as law enforcement in addressing the crisis.

“Many of our young people are losing direction, and it is painful to see them waste their potential,” Chief Abdi said.

“If families take the front line in guiding them, we can build a safer and more hopeful Garissa.”

Garissa, a largely pastoralist county in northeastern Kenya, has for years faced security challenges, including sporadic banditry, petty crime, and cross-border insecurity linked to militant activity.

While local authorities say they are committed to increasing patrols and cracking down on gangs, officials insist that long-term solutions must come from within the community.

Religious leaders and elders attending the meeting backed the officials’ call, saying that traditional values and faith-based mentorship programs could help redirect young people from the path of crime.

“We have a duty as elders and parents to show our youth that there is dignity in hard work and respect for others,” said Sheikh Haji Abdi, a cleric from Garissa town. “If we fail them, crime will claim them.”

Participants at the forum also highlighted the lack of opportunities for young people, many of whom remain unemployed despite completing secondary education.

Sheikh Haji Abdi called on both county and national governments to invest in vocational training, job creation programs, and sports initiatives as ways of engaging youth positively.

Community members pledged to support the initiative, with several parents calling for more forums to sensitize families about the risks their children face. Garissa is grappling with the complex interplay of insecurity and youth unemployment.

Local leaders hope that a renewed focus on family and community guidance will help stem the tide of young people drifting into crime.