•Marsabit police commander Robinson Mboloi said they are yet to know the motive of the attack.
•He said more security agents had been deployed to address the menace.
Image: THE STAR
Special teams have been deployed to parts of the Marsabit-Moyale highway to hunt a gang that has been attacking motorists and even killing them.
The latest incident happened on April 6 when lorry driver Lio Guje, 36, was shot and killed in Parakishoni.
Guje's relatives said he was headed for Laisamis when he was attacked.
Two other passengers who were in the lorry escaped unhurt.
Marsabit police commander Robinson Mboloi said they are yet to know the motive of the attack.
He said more security agents had been deployed to address the menace.
The special forces embedded in police conducting the operation have instructions to pursue those behind the attacks.
The attacks have left people dead and others displaced.
Last week, a 70-year-old businessman man was shot dead in an attack by gunmen riding on a motorcycle in Marsabit.
Boru Guyo Huka was walking on Nyayo Road when he was attacked by the gunmen who sped off without robbing him.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i last week said the government is determined to solve the crisis in parts of Marsabit, Laikipia, Samburu and Baringo.
He said more than 25 per cent of national government resources are committed to securing the areas.
He said special units of security agencies embedded with police are deployed to the counties.
“The situation is aggravated by politics of expansionism, drought, rough and vast terrain and proliferation of arms sneaked in through porous borders. Political instability and troubles in neighbouring countries making it easy to access weapons,” Matiang'i said.
He said practices such as cattle rustling worsened the conflict and the government is investing in infrastructures to open up the region and encourage more settlements.
The CS urged leaders in the counties to engage more in people-driven and peacebuilding initiatives.
Marsabit is among areas classified as hotspots ahead of the August polls due to inter-clan fighting.
Tens of people have in the past months been killed in what is seen as a political game to control local resources.
On February 22, President Uhuru Kenyatta gave Marsabit leaders two weeks to come up with a lasting solution to the communal conflicts that have bedevilled the county.
But the situation is yet to stabilise.
The President said failure to bring forward a concrete strategy to stop the conflicts will push the government to deploy security agencies with strict instructions to forcefully end insecurity in the county.
The President emphasised the need for Marsabit leaders to change their approach and work together to promote unity instead of fuelling conflicts among residents.
“Make peace to benefit fully by being at the centre of government. Instead of focusing on war and petty tribal clashes, focus on how you will uplift the lives of the people of Marsabit,” he said.
The President Marsabit leaders to adopt the same approach to ensure their county is peaceful.
He advised leaders across the country not to allow political competition to undermine peace and security urging them to work together towards uniting Kenyans.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris