NAIROBI - Kenyan police have searched the offices of a cabinet minister who is leading the campaign against a proposed constitution after bomb threats that further stoked tensions ahead of an August referendum on the law.
Bonface Mwaniki, deputy head of the anti-terrorism police unit, said no bomb was found at the offices of higher education minister William Ruto after a phone warning on Monday, but the police would keep a vigil on government offices.
"This was probably somebody trying to cause a scare. If it was a real attack nobody would call ahead giving all the details of the planned bombing," Mwaniki told Reuters yesterday.
"The police are on alert and keeping guard at all government offices. Its not a heavy presence, though."
On Saturday the police arrested two people in the capital Nairobi with materials that could be used to make a bomb.
In mid-June grenade attacks at a rally in the heart of the capital, organised by church leaders opposed to the new constitution, killed at least six people and wounded dozens.
Kenyans are due to vote on the new charter at a referendum on August 4.
The new constitution will replace one that has been in use since independence from British colonial rule in 1963.
According to opinion polls almost two-thirds of Kenyans intend to vote in favour of the new constitution next month, though just as many say it needs certain amendments.
Uncertainty over the outcome of the referendum and whether the divisive atmosphere in Kenya will lead to violence is weighing on the east African country's currency.
"You could say it's concerns over political risk - there is nothing negative yet, but there is a bit of caution," said Moses Kiboi, head of trading at Citi in Kenya.
The proposed basic law - seen as key for investor confidence in east Africa's largest economy - is designed to trim the president's powers and to address decades of marginalisation of some tribes.
But concern is growing that violence might accompany the vote. More than 1300 people were killed in early 2008 in clashes after disputed presidential elections, triggering an International criminal court probe into crimes against humanity.
Christian church leaders planning a rally near Narok town this week, one of the flash points of Kenya's post-election violence, have asked the police to mount extra security at their meeting, citing rising tension ahead of the referendum.
Some church leaders are spearheading a "no" campaign because they are angry that the new document gives room for later amendments allowing abortion as well as the recognition of Muslim courts dealing with inheritance and divorce. - Reuters
Kenyan cops act after bomb threat
NAIROBI - Kenyan police have searched the offices of a cabinet minister who is leading the campaign against a proposed constitution after bomb threats that further stoked tensions ahead of an August referendum on the law.
Bonface Mwaniki, deputy head of the anti-terrorism police unit, said no bomb was found at the offices of higher education minister William Ruto after a phone warning on Monday, but the police would keep a vigil on government offices.
"This was probably somebody trying to cause a scare. If it was a real attack nobody would call ahead giving all the details of the planned bombing," Mwaniki told Reuters yesterday.
"The police are on alert and keeping guard at all government offices. Its not a heavy presence, though."
On Saturday the police arrested two people in the capital Nairobi with materials that could be used to make a bomb.
In mid-June grenade attacks at a rally in the heart of the capital, organised by church leaders opposed to the new constitution, killed at least six people and wounded dozens.
Kenyans are due to vote on the new charter at a referendum on August 4.
The new constitution will replace one that has been in use since independence from British colonial rule in 1963.
According to opinion polls almost two-thirds of Kenyans intend to vote in favour of the new constitution next month, though just as many say it needs certain amendments.
Uncertainty over the outcome of the referendum and whether the divisive atmosphere in Kenya will lead to violence is weighing on the east African country's currency.
"You could say it's concerns over political risk - there is nothing negative yet, but there is a bit of caution," said Moses Kiboi, head of trading at Citi in Kenya.
The proposed basic law - seen as key for investor confidence in east Africa's largest economy - is designed to trim the president's powers and to address decades of marginalisation of some tribes.
But concern is growing that violence might accompany the vote. More than 1300 people were killed in early 2008 in clashes after disputed presidential elections, triggering an International criminal court probe into crimes against humanity.
Christian church leaders planning a rally near Narok town this week, one of the flash points of Kenya's post-election violence, have asked the police to mount extra security at their meeting, citing rising tension ahead of the referendum.
Some church leaders are spearheading a "no" campaign because they are angry that the new document gives room for later amendments allowing abortion as well as the recognition of Muslim courts dealing with inheritance and divorce. - Reuters
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