- The two women and two men were shot dead near Liter Primary School
- The bandits had earlier attacked Lukuget Secondary School to steal animals but were repulsed by police.
Image: MATHEWS NDANYI
Bandits continued to cause havoc in Kerio Valley where four more people were shot dead in Marakwet East and six others injured in Baringo county.
The two women and two men were shot dead near Liter Primary School, increasing the number of those killed in January to at least 17 people.
They victims were heading to a funeral on Saturday when they were ambushed and shot dead near the school located on the Elgeyo Marakwet and West Pokot border.
Bodies of the latest victims were taken to Tot subcounty hospital mortuary.
“We have increase security teams in the affected area where we had also repulsed several other attacks”, said Marakwet East Deputy County Commissioner Simon Osumba.
The bandits had earlier attacked Lukuget Secondary School to steal animals but were repulsed by police.
The attacks occurred in broad day light as the pupils at Liter were sitting for exams, causing them to flee for safety. Residents described the month of January as one of the bloodiest in the recent past.
Senator Kipchumba Murkomen and Elgeyo Marakwet Deputy Governor Wesley Rotich condemned the continued attacks, which have paralysed development in most areas.
Rotich warned that children in schools in the region may not sit for national exams in March if the government does not intervene to stop the banditry attacks.
“The bandits are now targeting institutions including schools and hospitals and in many areas children and parents have been forced to flee for safety”, said Rotich who visited areas affected by the latest attacks.
Murkomen, who spoke at campaign rallies for DP William Ruto, said banditry attacks had ravaged life in Kerio Valley and security teams should focus on affected areas instead of concentrating on politics.
“This government is not serious with the lives of our people. People are being killed every day in Keio Valley and Laikipia by bandits yet to no one is concerned”, Murkomen said.
Newly posted Elgeyo Marakwet county commissioner John Korir has pledged to work with all leaders and communities in Kerio Valley to find a lasting solution to the banditry problem.
Korir says the banditry problem cannot be solved by government officers or the police without support from the political leaders and communities along with peace actors.
Korir swapped places with Dr Ahmed Omar who has been moved to Busia.
He said so many people had lost their lives in the region and time had come for leaders and communities to urgently engage in dialogue on how to end the insecurity problem that had also paralysed development in the region.
“There is a need for concerted efforts to deal with the problem of insecurity in Kerio Valley”, said Korir. He is planning a leaders meeting in the region to help find solutions ahead of the exams.
While handing over to Korir last week, Omar harshly told off political leaders in counties affected by banditry accusing them of failing to support the government to end the insecurity problem.
Omar accused the political leaders of going to the extent of using the plight of affected children in the region to seek political mileage.
He said the political leaders had reduced themselves to cry babies who only dash to the region whenever there are banditry incidents to show off themselves as sympathetic yet they were not serious in fighting banditry.
Omar said some of the political leaders can afford to hire choppers and fly to the region with the media only to show off and then return to Nairobi within an hour, leaving communities with no solutions.
“We have done a lot with the communities and other groups but somewhere among the leadership there were gaps and weaknesses. I can tell you that there were times I did not get support from the local politicians," he said.
He appealed to the local politicians to understand that they must be committed to finding peace for their communities.
Edited by Henry Makori