Kenyan security officers manning checkpoints along the Garissa- Mandera highway made a curious discovery during a sting operation last weekend.Acting on intelligence, the officers laid a trap to intercept a suspected al-Shabaab facilitator using a known courier service to transport merchandise from Nairobi to Mandera before onward transportation to al-Shabaab controlled areas within Somalia. Hidden within boxes containing common house hold goods and sacks of cereals was a cache of unidentified pillsrousing suspicion of narcotics trafficking. However, further lab tests shockingly revealed the pills to be Viagra, used to boost men’s performance in bed.

The case has drawn wide speculation as to why the terrorist group al-Shabaab could be sourcing large quantities of sex enhancement drugs. Some taunted the militants, citing battlefield stress owing to continuous onslaught by security forces in both Somalia and Kenya could be responsible. It appears a silent pandemic is wreaking havoc inside the terrorists’ bedrooms, forcing the group to abandon its strict interpretation of Islamic teachings on modesty. Moreover, recent trends by al-Shabaab recruiters targeting young women with offers of being jihadi brides for their militants indicates a social crisis in the besieged towns habited by the group. While drug abuse is known to be rampant within the rank and file of al-Shabaab, they have traditionally abused stimulants such as miraa, Kuber, which help suppress hunger pangs and improve prowess during confrontations.

According to officers manning the checkpoint, such forms of ‘contraband’are not unusual to find in cargo destined for al-Shabaab localities but never in such large quantities before. They argue that recruits heading to join al-Shabaab are usually of questionable moral character, criminals, running from the law and seeking refuge under the pretense of turning over a new leaf. This they opine, could be a hush-hush arrangement, and given the punishment mated by al-Shabaab for such offences, this must have blessings from influential figures within the group.