A deputy minister who is also the MP for the Tana River area, where more than 100 people have been killed in the past month, was removed from his cabinet position after being charged with incitement, Kenya's presidency said Thursday.

Dhadho Godhana, assistant livestock minister and the MP for Galole in the Tana River delta, was charged in court Wednesday with incitement to violence.

"The assistant minister has been dropped from cabinet following consultations between the president and prime minister after he was charged in court," a statement from the office of President Mwai Kibaki said.

Godhana denied the charges and was released on bail pending another hearing set for October 2.

His appearance in court came just hours after Kibaki ordered the arrest and prosecution of leaders fanning violence in the troubled region in southeast Kenya.

The Kenyan government also plans to deploy paramilitary police to the region.