Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei has criticised Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, accusing him of failing to address persistent insecurity in his home region of Kerio Valley.

The senator expressed displeasure with how Murkomen has so far handled the killing of Catholic priest Alloyce Cheruiyot Bett, who was ambushed and sprayed with bullets by unknown assailants at Tot in Kerio Valley, Elgeyo Marakwet.

The priest lost his life after he was shot by assailants in a harrowing ambush on Thursday, May 22. Father Bett was targeted by the assailants, with reports indicating he was heading back to his base after delivering a sermon when he met his death.

Cherargei accused Murkomen of directing the police to report that the priest was not killed by the bandits, yet, according to the senator, bandits are the ones who took the priest's life.

Kipchumba Murkomen before a meeting with the security committees from Isiolo, Meru, Laikipia, Samburu and Marsabit counties on Wednesday, April 30 2025.

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Kipchumba Murkomen

"Out of frustration & panic, he directed the National Police Service to indicate that Rev. Fr. Allois Cheruiyot Bett of St. Matthias Mulumba Tot Parish, Elgeyo Marakwet, that his killing was not related to banditry, but the opposite is true. We shall not allow him to malign the Priest in death. For the last three days, the area has been a playground for criminals of banditry, and Kenyans have been killed," he said.

In a post shared on his social media on May 23, Cherargei reminded Murkomen of how vocal he was about insecurity during former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration.

He also accused Murkomen of neglecting the same issue despite being in a position of power.

“CS Interior Murkomen should be reminded that charity begins at home. A few years ago, he was complaining about insecurity at his home in the Kerio Valley belt, but now he is in charge of security, yet our people continue to be slaughtered like goats because he is just incorrigible, incompetent, and lazy,” said Cherargei.

Cherargei’s comments refer to several social media posts Murkomen made in 2022 while serving as a senator.

At the time, Murkomen had expressed frustration following a brutal bandit attack that claimed the lives of children in Marakwet East.

“I am devastated by the merciless slaughtering of my people in Kerio Valley. Today, 3 kids who were just playing were brutally killed by heartless bandits at Tot in Marakwet East. If this does not prick the conscience of President Uhuru Kenyatta, then nothing will,” Murkomen wrote on May 29, 2022.

“Please, Kenyans, help me force Uhuru, CS Matiang’i and IG Mutyambai to do something to end the killing,” he added, calling on the public to pressure the government to take action.

Just days later, on June 1, 2022, Murkomen criticised the former president for showcasing military equipment while violence persisted in the region.

“Uhuru Kenyatta is praising security agencies and parading expensive weapons and heavy artillery while the people are being slaughtered in Kerio Valley? What a shame,” he posted.

Now, Senator Cherargei is questioning why Murkomen has remained silent and inactive on the very issue he once passionately condemned.

A photo collage of Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei (left) and Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen (right).

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Samson Cherargei, Kipchumba Murkomen