NAIROBI, Kenya Feb 22-Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has denied any police involvement in the tear gassing incident that disrupted a political rally addressed by ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna in Kakamega terming the claims a calculated attempt to blame law enforcement officers and incite the public.Speaking in a church service in Kipkelion a day after the chaotic scenes, Murkomen said the government would not tolerate what he described as ‘political theatrics’ aimed at tainting the image of the National Police Service.“I want to request politicians those who were in Kakamega yesterday, in Nyeri and in Nairobi to go to those rallies in peace. We will deploy police officers to ensure there is beefed-up security, but don’t give us this comedy that you are going to meetings with teargas. You throw it and then go to rallies with goons armed with knives and rungus. That we will deal with firmly,” Murkomen said.The Interior Boss insisted that the police were not responsible for the teargas that was lobbed into the Kakamega rally, adding that the office of the Inspector General has commenced investigations were underway to identify the individual behind the incident.“I have no doubt in my mind that the Inspector General has a responsibility to ensure that the person who was carrying teargas yesterday and threw it in Kakamega so that police are blamed must be searched for and arrested for such acts of trying to seek sympathy and to incite the people of Kenya. That must be dealt with finality,” he stated.He, however, blamed opposition leaders for what he termed as politically instigated insecurity with an attempt to discredit the government in maintaining peace ahead of a highly charged political season.“The only issue we face as a country is insecurity caused by politicians who have no vision. They deploy the youth to meetings and instigate war between brothers. Instead of calling for your rally and selling your agenda, you walk around with people who instigate violence,” he said.In an apparent swipe at a former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua who recently criticized the state of security in the country, Murkomen accused him of fuelling unrest for political mileage.“I saw a former leader in this country who served for a quarter term saying that insecurity in this country has worsened, yet he is obsessed with President Ruto and me. The truth is he is a chief negotiator of goons, and when his goons are beaten up, that’s when you see him lament,” Murkomen claimed.Murkomen said the Ministry of Interior was committed to maintaining peace and warned against attempts to spark ethnic tensions or political violence.“The Ministry of Interior is working actively to ensure that Kenyans are living in peace. We will not accept, by all means, people who will incite war between brothers and neighbours. Tribal clashes and incitement will not be condoned and anybody who engages in that will face the full wrath of the law,” he warned.The CS defended the government’s security record, saying the country had made significant strides in stabilising volatile regions since the Kenya Kwanza administration took office under President William Ruto.“Since President William Ruto took the reins of this country, when Professor Kithure Kindiki was the Interior Cabinet Secretary, we had a lot of issues in the country including banditry, Al-Shabaab and border conflicts. But since I took up the post, we have managed to arrest those issues and Kenya is one of the safest places on this continent,” Murkomen said.Kakamega Rally Yesterday,even before the Linda Mwananchi Movement leaders made their way to Amalemba grounds, teargas were already billowing.Teargas canisters were lobbed at event organisers ahead of the rally scheduled in Kakamega County today.Tension began building early in the morning as small groups of rowdy youths were seen uprooting and setting ablaze road reflectors near Amalemba Grounds, where the rally was scheduled to take place.At around 9:00am, a teargas canister was lobbed toward the venue, triggering panic among sections of the crowd. Some attendees responded by hurling stones, escalating the standoff.As the situation grew volatile, groups of young men organised themselves along key access roads leading to the grounds. They mounted informal barricades, stopping and inspecting vehicles headed toward the rally site in what appeared to be an attempt to control who accessed the area.Elsewhere in Kakamega town, rival political energies were also on display. Youths allied to the broad-based government cruised through the streets atop trucks and motorbikes, chanting slogans and waving placards emblazoned with the words “Two Tutam,” adding another layer of theatre to an already charged morning.Despite Siaya Governor James Orengo and Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi having uninterrupted speech to the crowd, the rally was almost disrupted when Sifuna took to the podium.Teargas canisters arced into the gathering, landing near the stage and within the crowd. White clouds spread quickly across the dias.Sifuna had barely risen to offer his opening remarks when canisters landed near the dais, sending thick white plumes billowing into the crowd. Supporters scattered in panic, running in all directions to escape the choking fumes.Amid the chaos, Sifuna vowed the meeting would proceed despite the disruption.“This meeting will not be disrupted as they did in Kitengela. We will extinguish it like bhang in prison. This meeting will not be disrupted, it will not end,” he declared.He urged supporters to remain calm and avoid confrontation with police.“Young people, don’t throw stones at them. We will extinguish this teargas like bhang and continue with this meeting,” he said.