Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i Wednesday ordered herders who have invaded private farms in Laikipia county to leave.
Matiang’i said an operation will be mounted in a week's time to flush out the hundreds of illegal herders from neighbouring Samburu, Baringo and Isiolo counties if they fail to leave voluntarily.
The CS warned that the operation will be merciless and very firm. He spoke at the Naibor Anti-Stock Theft Unit camp in Segera location.
“If you are here in Laikipia illegally, leave voluntarily, failing which the government will do what it is supposed to do. Do not expect us to come to hug and kiss you,” Matiang’i said.
He noted that the government will not be intimidated by human rights activists while carrying out the operation, saying thugs have been destroying other people’s property.
Matiang’i at the same time announced that the government will take over the 80,000 acres in the Kirimon area at the Laikipia-Samburu border. A special unit of police officers will also be built to serve as a buffer zone.
“We shall instal three security units, including that of Kenya Defence Forces, in the area because it has become a playground for the criminals. We shall start operating from there so that those who would want to dare us can meet us there,” he said.
The CS said politics of balkanisation in Laikipia North had led to surging cases of insecurity. Some politicians are known and will be arrested soon and prosecuted in a court of law, he said, warning them against importing voters from other regions.
Matiang’i said the government will not allow gangs to intimidate people so that a certain politician can rise to power.
Laikipia North MP Sarah Lekorere told the meeting that 80 per cent of problems in the area were caused by bad politics, while 20 per cent was occasioned by drought.
She accused politicians of fuelling the animosity and inciting people to invade private ranches.
Governor Ndiritu Muriithi called for a proper mechanism of making pasture available through feedlots during the dry period.
“We usually know the seasons when the drought hits us and we should be fully prepared. Again, we should adopt that formula of livestock offtake where we sell them during the dry period and restock them when the weather improves,” Muriithi said.
He said four governors from the Amaya Triangle—Laikipia, Samburu, Baringo and Isiolo—last Friday agreed on the offtake so that the livestock population can be reduced through sales to the Kenya Meat Commission.
Matiang’i said the KMC has pledged to buy 1,000 head of cattle from Laikipia and will start as early as this weekend. He at the same time announced that grazing agreements between herders and private conservancies must be registered with the county government from next week.
“For purposes of security reasons, we would want to have a record of who is where and the number of animals they have,” the CS said.
He said that would help control infiltration and interference by criminals who come in with livestock and steal others while leaving.
