Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has issued a stern warning to the government, threatening tough action if irregularities in the issuance of national identity cards persist.

Speaking during a meeting with Gen Z youth in Nakuru on Friday, October 3, 2025, Matiang’i cautioned that the opposition would not sit back and watch as the government continues to delay or frustrate young Kenyans seeking ID cards, especially with elections fast approaching.

He noted that denying young people access to IDs was a deliberate strategy to prevent them from registering as voters, arguing that the regime fears the youth will not support its re-election bid. Matiang’i criticised the constant excuses being given at registration centres, including claims of missing IDs and alleged problems with ID card printers, dismissing them as unacceptable more than six decades after Kenya’s independence.

“We will review that situation in the country. If people are denied ID cards so that they don’t register to vote, we will organise one day. We will organise one day. People are not going to play these kinds of silly games that we don’t want to do.” Matiangi stated.

Matiang’i emphasised that Kenyans had reached a point where they were determined to take charge of their country and demand accountability.

He outlined a three-step approach: remaining orderly and respectful of institutions, pushing for the right processes to be followed, and ultimately being ready to demand and enforce accountability if the government fails to act.

“First of all, the first step is to be orderly, to be focused and to respect the institutions. Step two is to push to ensure the right thing is done. But step three, we should not lose our responsibility to demand and force things to be done the right way,” he added.

Suppress voter turnout

According to him, the continued frustrations faced by youths in acquiring IDs reflect a broader attempt to suppress voter registration ahead of the next general election.

“That is why you want to ensure that these young people don’t vote because they will not vote for you. So you want to make sure that they don’t get ID cards, and you keep lying and pretending about it. You know, the things that people talk about these countries are amazing.”

He vowed that the opposition would not hesitate to mobilise and take action should the government persist with such alleged foul play.

There comes a time when there is mass voter registration, with it now entering day 6 of the new voter registration.