00:00 Of course, we have had occasion also to review our ongoing program to clamp down on drugs,
00:08 alcohol and substance abuse.
00:11 And we are happy with the work going on here in Matungulu sub-county and Machakos county
00:18 in general and I think across the country because this morning we have visited a few
00:25 other counties, we have been to Tarakanithi, Embu, Kitui and later on we will be going
00:30 to Nairobi, Kadiado and so forth and so on.
00:35 And our experience so far is that the national campaign to rid our country from drugs and
00:44 substance abuse and illicit alcohol is progressing well.
00:48 I commend all the teams and here in Machakos I commend the county security and intelligence
00:54 team.
00:55 Here in Matungulu I commend the sub-county security and intelligence team of Matungulu
01:02 for a good job in that front.
01:05 Across the country we have been able to shut down and destroy 12 distilleries that were
01:13 operating outside the law and that were manufacturing dangerous drinks across the country.
01:21 Twelve illegal and illegally operating distilleries have been shut down and their capacity to
01:29 produce has been disabled.
01:33 Across the country also in the 47 counties so far since this operation began on 7th of
01:39 March this year we have been able also to shut down 4,800 premises that have been selling
01:55 alcohol.
01:57 They had been licensed by the various county governments but the licenses have been revoked
02:05 because those premises were operating within the prohibited proximity to basic learning
02:15 institutions.
02:16 As you are aware the Alcoholic Drink Control Act prohibits your selling of alcohol whether
02:27 licensed or not within 300 meters to a basic learning institution.
02:34 So we have been very keen and enforced that law and we have shut down 4,800 establishments
02:43 across the 47 counties for violating the proximity rule to save our children the menace of influence
02:55 and exposure into alcohol and other substances at an early age.
03:02 We are doing this for the country, we are not doing it for any other reason.
03:06 And going forward no license of whatever type will have any validity in the territory of
03:13 Kenya if it is within 300 meters to a basic learning institution and that includes private
03:24 and public schools alike.
03:29 Also across the country we have been able to shut down over 9,000 facilities or premises
03:44 that were operating without any form of license.
03:51 We are not going to allow those premises to resume that illegal activity.
03:57 The crackdown and the enforcement measure program continues.
04:04 I have said we have a 25 point plan to deal with this problem nationally and these are
04:12 just some of the measures we are taking.
04:15 We have shut down nearly 300 illegally operating chemists because we also discovered part of
04:27 the drug problem is drugs that are prescription drugs which are being used in the drug industry
04:37 but they are being dispensed in chemists outside the law or even by chemists which are operating
04:46 outside the law.
04:48 With the support of the Poisons Board, the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, we have been able
04:56 to shut down approximately 400 such premises.
05:01 We have also shut down 290 agrovets because we also discovered that some of the animal
05:13 or veterinary drugs are being sold and mixed with other substances to be able to produce
05:24 some of the most fatal narcotic drugs.
05:30 So again we are cracking down on agrovets that are operating outside the law and which
05:35 obviously, if they are outside the law, chances are that they could be used to perpetuate
05:43 the drug problem across the country.
05:45 Thank you.
05:46 [END]
