Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir has lashed out at the national government accusing it of failing to deal with the drug menace at the coast.

Nassir, who led the onslaught against the government, accused it of empty rhetoric even as the drugs issue continues to threaten the future of many youth in the region.

“Until when will we be lied to that the government is going to arrest drug barons and peddlers? You (government) have intelligence, you have the DCI yet you have failed us”

"If you can’t do it, tell me I set up a special county team to deal with the matter,” said Nassir.

The agitated governor was speaking at Lohana Hall in Majengo Saturday afternoon during the launch of issuance of funds to schools for the Leave No Child Behind program that targets to pay capitation of Sh5,000 for some 40,000 day scholars in Mombasa schools.

His sentiments come barely a week after the deputy president Rigathi Gachagua convened the Illicit Alcohol And Drug Eradication Conference in Mombasa.

The DP questioned why some leaders were absent during the conference saying this was an important forum to discuss and issue affecting a large population of the youth in the region.

Gachagua also questioned the silence of coast leaders over the drug menace in the region.

However, Nassir responded saying the government was insincere with the fight saying despite having intelligence and all the resources to arrest barons and peddlers, they had failed in their mandate.

He asked the national government to stop lying to Mombasa people issuing empty threats and warnings, and instead take action and parade the people they suspect to be behind the vice before the public.

‘Don’t come here and threaten us, we want to see action. We must speak the truth, enough of empty rhetoric, we want to see action,” Nassir said.

The governor said that almost every family in Mombasa has been affected by the menace and as such the time of using the agenda to insult coast leaders was over and action must be taken.

"Almost every family in Mombasa has been affected with the drug issue, even I lost my own brother to drugs. We will not continue to allow people speak with no action, don’t say you were not in government in the previous regime, you are now in power, take action,” he said.

Likoni MP Mishi Mboko told off the DP saying that he was politicizing the matter at the expense of Mombasa people who have been adversely affected by the vice.

Mboko said that she has been giving intelligence to officers, but no action has ever been taken alleging that some officers are beneficiaries of proceeds from drugs.

“Your officers know where drugs are sold, every now and then I give your officers intelligence about were drugs are sold but no action is taken”

‘Do you want me to take cuffs and arrest them myself?” she posed.

She expressed disappointment that the government wit trained officers and all the tools at their disposal, have failed to make any major arrests.

"It is a shame that officers trained by taxpayers money and with a lot of intelligence yet they don’t take action,” she said.

“Unless you want to politicize the issue of drugs, if not you have the capacity to zero rate the drugs issue in Kenya,”Mboko said.