05/06/2026
Very alarming!!!!
The loudest critics of the security budget are often people who enjoy peace so comfortably that they mistake it for something automatic. Some commercial activists, opportunistic politicians, and armchair analysts loudly claim that the security sector gets “too much money” with “nothing to show for it,” as if national security is a roadside kiosk that operates on guesswork and goodwill.
Some casually suggest cutting the security budget to subsidize fuel, completely ignoring the reality that a nation without security quickly becomes a nation where businesses collapse, investment disappears, and even that cheap fuel becomes meaningless in chaos. Security is not maintained through slogans, outrage, or social media activism.
The shallowest argument of all is reducing the role of security officers to “just throwing tear gas at protesters.” That kind of thinking exposes a frightening level of ignorance about what security actually means. Intelligence gathering, anti-terror operations, border surveillance, crime prevention, emergency response, cyber threats, and protecting citizens from attacks are not things that happen by magic.
Ironically, the same people exaggerating how “useless” security spending is would be the first to scream the loudest if insecurity rises for even a week. Peace has made them forgetful. The reason many Kenyans sleep peacefully, travel freely, run businesses, and go to school without constant fear is because security officers are working around the clock often in dangerous and thankless conditions.
And here is the uncomfortable truth, the budget many people complain about is arguably still not enough to provide maximum protection for a country facing modern threats. Serious nations do not gamble with security. They invest in it. You cannot expect officers to fight sophisticated threats with poor pay, outdated equipment, and limited resources while pretending patriotism alone can stop criminals and terrorists
