Parliament has initiated a probe into allegations of large-scale dumping of toxic nuclear materials in Northern Kenya claimed to be fueling worrying spike in cancer cases.
The dumping dates back to 1980s and 1990s by unidentified foreign powers.
Leaders from the region now claim the area is bearing the brunt of the irresponsible action that has been kept under wraps by successive governments.
Led by Garissa Governor Nathif Jama and Wajir South MP Adiow Mohamed petitioned the House saying the situation has reached crisis levels.
According to Nathif, the region has recorded 2,417 cases of cancer in the last three years.
The governor said the numbers have been climbing from 430 cases recorded in 2023 to 1347 cases last year.
This year alone, the region has recorded 640 cases by June.
Most of the cases, according to Nathif’s presentation, are from rural areas of Garissa, Tana River, Wajir, Isiolo, Marsabit, Embu and some parts of Somalia.
“Biggest case is the oesophagus cancer or caner of the threat because most residents drink water from the water pans,” Nathif told Environment Committee of the National Assembly.
“This is indication of toxic waste dumped in the ground causing these cancer cases. There has been a lot of dumping in the area.”
Adow however claimed the number could be much higher given the fact that not all cases are taken to the hospital.
“A great number of people choose to suffer in silence because of the various challenges, the number is much bigger,” Adow said.
The leaders now want Parliament to investigate the specific locations where dumping occurred and the corrective measures to reduce the impact.
Mwala MP and Environment committee chairman Vincent Musyoka said his committee will conduct multi-sectoral probe to get to the bottom of the allegations of dumping.
Musyoka said the allegations are weighty and borders on national security and requires serious attention from Interior ministry as well as Ministry of Health.
“Nuclear waste is not a simple matter, it is a security matter. We want to establish how this toxic material has been dumped in Kenya,” Musyoka said.
The Mwala lawmaker said his committee will summon all stakeholders linked to the dumping including former presidential candidate Cyrus Jirongo to shed light on the activity.
“Every person who is a stakeholder in this matter will appear before this committee,” Musyoka said.
“The committee commends Jirongo for coming out. Why is it that the government system decided to hide this thing all these years? Who benefitted from this?” posed committee vice chairperson Charles Kamuren (Baringo South).
Jirongo had last year disclosed that former President Daniel Moi's regime knowingly dumped toxic nuclear waste in Northern Kenya, leading to a high prevalence of cancer cases in the region.
In an interview with Lawyer PLO Lumumba, Jirongo revealed he had obtained classified documents from Jimmy Choge, the lawyer of the late Nicholas Biwott.
The documents, he noted, allegedly contained confidential information about the dumping of toxic waste in Northern Kenya, including the specific locations and details of the allegations.
According to the ex-cabinet minister, he confronted Moi with the sensitive information in a stormy encounter.
"Mzee, I have information that people in the Ministry of Energy are cheating Kenyans by saying they are looking for oil, but it is toxic waste that is being dumped in North Eastern and around that area," Jirongo recounted his conversation with Moi.
"I've never been in trouble like that, because I was asked, Where did you get the documents from?"
"Moi even issued threats, warning me that if I didn't reveal my sources, it would be the end of me."
