Garissa governor Nathif Jama has issued a stern warning to rogue traders taking advantage of the current floods to hoard essential commodities.
The governor said he would not hesitate to revoke the licenses of such traders.
Addressing the press today at a Garissa hotel, Nathif said that among the commodities the traders are hoarding include sugar, maize flour, milk, and cooking oil among other essential items.
Nathif said that his office had received several complaints from area residents that some traders were holding back essential commodities.
This, he said, is to create an artificial shortage to inflate their prices and make a ‘kill’ because the major supply routes to the region have been closed.
The governor said that hoarding of essential commodities is a criminal offence and will be severely punished.
Nathif called on religious leaders in Garissa town to speak out on the practice that he not only termed as ‘immoral’ but against the Islamic and other religious teachings.
His sentiments were echoed by area acting County Commissioner Solomon Chesut who directed the DCI detectives to investigate those involved with a view of prosecuting them.
The prices of commodities in Garissa town and neighbouring towns of Madogo and Mororo in Tana River county have shot up in the last two days following the closure of the two main supply routes.
A spot check revealed that the prices of essential commodities have doubled, other s tripled with a kilo of sugar now retailing at Sh500 up from Sh200, 2 kg of maize flour at Sh600 from Sh240, a carton of milk at Sh1,000 from Sh450.
The prices will even skyrocket if the Garissa-Nairobi highway is not opened up to allow the commodities to come in.
Three days, Kenya National Highway Authority (KeNHA) has temporarily closed the Garissa - Nairobi highway and Garissa - Mombasa road after several sections of the roads were swept away by the raging floods occasioned by El-Nino rains pounding several parts of the country.
The two major roads are not only the entry points to Garissa town and the rest of the North Eastern region but also supply all the commodities from Nairobi, Mombasa and grocery supplies from central Kenya.
Hundreds of public servants who reside in Madogo, Tana River County and work in Garissa town and its environs have for the second day not reported for duty after KeNHA closed the Madogo - Garissa road after it was swept away by flash floods.
Meanwhile, Governor Jama has directed the Department of Special Programmes to move with speed to ensure that they cushion the locals against the adverse effects of the flash floods wreaking havoc.
Speaking when he distributed relief food to 450 IDP families at the Somali Cultural Center, Jama assured the affected residents of timely interventions to alleviate their suffering.
They include sourcing an aircraft to airlift relief supplies to the areas that cannot be accessed by road.
The county boss said that his office will liaise with all relevant agencies to coordinate assessment and intervention programmes for humanitarian assistance.
