Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga has condemned the government’s move to deploy the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to assist police in assessing the security situation across the country during protests.

Speaking in Siaya County on Saturday, Raila said the military’s primary role was to defend the nation from external threats, not to manage internal unrest.

“We have reached a stage where the government has to take the military to the streets. This means the civilian authority has failed. The civilian forces have failed to deal with the people. The Army is not supposed to be in the streets, the army is supposed to defend the country from foreign aggressions not to deal with internal strikes,” said Raila.

The former Prime Minister expressed concern over the Court ruling that allowed the KDF deployment, saying it undermined the role of the Kenya Police Service, which is constitutionally mandated to deal with internal security issues.

“That’s why it is wrong for our courts to rule that you can continue to maintain army on our streets because we have got Kenyan police to do this,” Raila added.

The opposition leader went on to criticize the police’s handling of protesters, noting that Kenyan laws protect the right to peaceful assembly and demonstration.

His comments come a day after the High Court refused to stop the deployment of KDF soldiers to help police restore normalcy following a petition by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).

In his ruling, Justice Lawrence Mugambi noted that the deployment of the military to assist the police was necessary given the need to maintain peace and public safety and protect critical infrastructure.

“Continuation of military assistance is necessary in view of the need to preserve order and protect military infrastructure,” Mugambi ruled.