Lamu residents have accused non-local herders of orchestrating conflicts and want police to kick them out of the county.
For years, county farmers and herders have been feuding over pasture corridors with resultant loss of lives and properties.
Most of the 'troublesome' herders are from neighbouring Tana River and Garissa counties. The residents accuse them of letting loose their large herds on people’s farms in Mpeketoni, Hindi and Witu.
Lamu Farmers Association chairman Julius Mwangi called on the county government to chase out all herders "for peace to be restored".
“It’s impossible to get along with herders because they believe so much in war and not democracy. They will poke you and they will be the first to cry wolf. They don’t respect peace or law and are hard to reason with,” Mwangi said.
The locals accused the county and national governments of failing to resolve the dispute.
But county commissioner Irungu Macharia faulted both sides of taking the law into their hands whenever there was conflict.
Macharia said, “It’s of great essence that people learn to co-exist. Whoever takes the law into their own hands is breaking the law. Report to the police.”
Edited by R.Wamochie
