"I will never again in my entire life dare pursue armed bandits."
That's what a Baringo teacher said on Monday after surviving an ordeal at the hands of bandits and a gunshot wound to his left shoulder.
Francis Chang’wony, 27, from Ng’aratuko village, Baringo North, said he was ambushed and shot while pursuing the bandits in attempt to recover stolen animals on April 25.
“Indeed, it was such a bad experience but I just thank God to be alive, otherwise, I would have been dead by now," he said.
In an interview with the Star in Kabarnet town on Tuesday, he described the armed bandits as "inhuman, merciless radicalised people aiming only to shed blood and take lives".
"I appeal from my heart to my fellow innocent Kenyans everywhere to stop putting their lives on the line. In case of stock theft, it is better to report to police so they can take up the matter," he said.
Chang’wony was with 10 other civilians from the Tugen community armed only with bows and arrows. They were pursuing Pokot bandits armed with AK-47 assault rifles at the Lemuyek bushes along the porous Baringo North-Tiaty border.
The bandits had attacked Ng’aratuko village in Baringo North, sprayed residents with bullets, killing one person. Then they drove 54 head of cattle towards Tiaty.
Chang'wony said he saw his colleague, George Chebor, 40, shot in the leg.
"We tried to rescue him but the bandits were armed with sophisticated weapons and overpowered us," he said.
After Chebor was shot, he was tortured and then given his phone to speak to his wife and family members. He told his wife and brother to take care of the children.
They didn't ask for ransom, they only wanted to inflict pain, he said.
“I later heard he was lashed, deeply cut on the chest with a sharp object and finally shot in the ear and left to die," Changwony said.
On Friday last week, another teacher, Kemboi Simotwo, 26, from Kinyach, Baringo North, was shot dead while herding his animals at Kobot village in the volatile Kerio Valley.
The bandits suspected to come from the neighbouring Elgeyo Marakwet ambushed and killed the unemployed P1 teacher, making away with hundreds of cattle belonging to six families.They headed towards border at Tot village.
A week earlier, Chebor's cousin Jacob Kimosop Kiptoitoi was shot dead in the same area, so residents were mourning two deaths.
Chang'wony said while in the bush, he was scared by a loud gunshot, saying he hadn't experienced a gun battle before.
“While I was trying to run back home I stumbled onto another bandit who shot me at close range in my shoulder."
He said the assailant was aiming at his head, "but fortunately God had mercy on me and luckily I survived to tell the story,” he said.
He described the bandit as a young boy, between 14 and 17 years. A striped sheet was tied around his waist.
When he was shot, he fell to the ground and passed out. He was taken by family and residents to Baringo County Hospital in Kabarnet and later referred to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret where he was admitted for two weeks.
Chang'wony urged the government to find out where the bandits got combat weapons.
“Surprisingly, most of the bullets are branded Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) so we wonder where and how do they get government property,” he said.
His brother Joshua said some bandits in Baringo and the neighbourhood have extensive military experience, “so no simple civilian can afford to repulse them”.
He urged the government to act swiftly to save the lives and property of innocent people before they are wiped out.
“Why is the government letting these bandits kill and impoverish us yet we are not second-class Kenyans, we voted for our leaders and they swore to protect us. Why do they fail in their mandate?
Leaders headed by East Africa Legislative Assembly MP Florence Jematia, former Governor Benjamin Cheboi and Baringo North MP William Cheptumo condemned the frequent bandit attacks.
“Government ought to come clean on insecurity or else tell us if they have given up. Then we will mobilise our people to arm themselves so they can protect themselves against aggressors," Jematia said.
Cheboi called upon the state to swiftly calm the situation before finding a long-term solution, like disarmament to end banditry once and for all.
Baringo commissioner Abdirisack Jaldesa said so far none of the stolen livestock has been recovered saying, enough police officers have already been deployed to pursue the bandits.
“We urge people to stay calm as the criminals are being sought, we are committed as government to bringing this menace to an end” Jaldesa said.
More than 20 people have been killed in Baringo alone since last December while reports suggest the bandits still have more than 6,000 illegal guns.
(Edited by V. Graham)
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