Police disrupted a United Democratic Alliance [UDA] meeting of aspirants drawn from the coast region held at the posh Terrace Villas Resorts in Nyali Mombasa county.

The law enforcement officers gave the participants at the forum thirty minutes to vacate the venue or face arrest.

The first batch of law enforcement officers arrived just as party National chairman Johnstone Muthama had finished making his opening remarks.

The move prompted the party security detail to whisk him and Secretary General Veronica Maina away from the meeting venue to evade police arrest.

The two were tipped of the presence of police officers at the venue of the meeting before being whisked away by their security detail.

Muthama, who is a former Machakos senator, had ended making his opening remarks at the meeting which was snubbed by local party bigwigs.

The police officers from Nyali police station ordered party aspirants to vacate the venue in less than thirty minutes or face arrest.

The UDA Secretary General was taking the participants through the party constitution and party primaries guideline before she was whisked away from the venue.

There were protests from party delegates as confusion set in while others went for a health break with the police threatening to lobby teargas canisters at them.

Outside the posh hotel a contingent of a reinforcement of police officers were ready to lobby teargas canisters into the hotel.

Nyali sub county  police commander Daniel Masaba told journalists all public gatherings have been suspended and therefore the meeting was against the government’s directives.

"No gathering of people like this is allowed, especially political meeting," said Masaba.

He said the government has banned all gatherings due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic arguing that he won’t allow such meetings to take place.

He said to make matters worse the hotel never notified the local police station of the intended meeting.

Speaking separately at Tamarind hotel in Mombasa county Muthama condemned the disruption of the forum and refuted claims that they had flouted the health protocols and guidelines.

“There was social distance as required and we avoided overcrowding by ensuring there was minimum number of participants,” he pointed out.

The UDA leader said the forum was a private meeting but they were surprised to see law enforcement ordering the meeting to be called off.

On her part the Secretary General blamed the police for the manner in which they acted to disrupt their private meeting.

Veronica insisted the meeting was being held in compliance with the guidelines to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

She told journalists the meeting adhered with the health protocol which they followed to the letter.

“We are surprised the incident which had happened in Meru had to also happen today in Mombasa county,” she pointed out.