- Security officers have come under fire for allegedly abetting deadly conflicts between farmers and camel herders in Kitui Constituency, Kitui County.
- At least three people have been killed and dozens injured in the clashes in recent days as the groups fight over grazing land.
Image: CURTESY
Security officers have come under fire for allegedly abetting deadly conflicts between farmers and camel herders in Kitui South Constituency, Kitui County.
At least three people have been killed and dozens injured in the clashes in recent days as the groups fight over grazing land.
Last week, locals narrated to senators how the police officers are allegedly pocketing bribes to protect and allow camels access to their farms.
“It is an open secret that the herders’ first point of call is the Mutha Police station. The camels are then driven to the police station where they are protected and guarded by the officers,” Daniel Mutinda, an area resident, said.
Mutinda’s sentiments were supported by the local community, which included Senator Enoch Wambua and area MCA Dominic Mwambisi.
He spoke during a town hall meeting between the committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations of the Senate on Wednesday.
The comments were in the presence of Kitui County commissioner Erastus Mbui.
The panel chaired by Baringo senator William Cheptumo was on a fact-finding visit to assess the security situation in the area following a month of conflict between the farmers and camel herders in Mutha
“The Inspector General of Police must conduct thorough investigations into the matter with a view of ascertaining the veracity of the allegations,” said William Cheptumo, who chairs the committee.
Mbui said he was not aware of the allegation while area police commander Leah Kithei told the committee that action had been taken against officers who were linked to the allegations and who have since been transferred.
The area has in the last month been the theatre of conflict pitting herders and farmers over the grazing land for livestock.
Senator Wambua has demanded a statement from the Ministry of Interior on the cause of the conflict and requested the committee to visit the area to ascertain the level of response by the security apparatus at both county and national governments.
Wambua had on October 18 sought a statement on the conflict that has engulfed the area.
“The police and the provincial administration are not innocent bystanders in this conflict,” Wambua said, “they are accomplices but we ask them to do what is expected of them,” he added
The senator said the conflict has festered because the local security team has failed to act, thereby emboldening the herders who
Mbui said he was not aware of the allegation.
But Area police commander Leah Kithei said told the committee that action had been taken against officers who were linked to the allegations and who have since been transferred.
The area has in the last month been the theatre of conflict pitting herders and farmers over the grazing land for livestock; a conflict that has left three people dead and livestock maimed.
Pressed by the severe drought that is biting the country, the herders believed to be from the northern counties, have moved into Kitui County with a large herd of camels in search of grazing land.
The Farmers accuse the herders of invading their farms and converting them into grazing fields triggering the conflict that has compromised the security situation in the area.
Mbui said efforts to combat the conflict have been hampered by limited resources with County Commissioner Erastus Mbui appealing for the Senate’s intervention to salvage the situation.
“We are up to the task but we have challenges with the resources,” Mbui told the committee.
Cheptumo promised to intervene with the Ministry of Interior to ensure that the two police Posts have vehicles.
“As a committee, we are taking up this matter with the Ministry of Interior to ensure that the police in this area is well resourced,” said Cheptumo.
He urged the two communities to maintain peace and coexist as they have done in the past.