|
End the slaughter
TOP CLERGY DEMAND GOVERNMENT ACTION
KENYA TIMES
By TIMES TEAM
09.04.2007
A COMMON theme yesterday dominated the pulpits as Kenyans marked Easter.
The call was to the government to immediately put to an end, blood-letting in Mt Elgon.
The clergy led by Archbishops Ndingi Mwana a Nzeki and Zaccheaus Okoth (Catholic) and Benjamin Nzimbi (Anglican Church of Kenya) and Samsom Mwangi Gaitho (African Independent Pentecostal Church of Africa ) made the demand with their target being Internal Security Minister John Michuki.
Ndingi who was speaking after presiding over mass at the Holy Family Basilica was joined by Kisumu Archbishop Zacchaeus Okoth in calling for an end to the clashes pitting settler clans in Mt Elgon and demanding that Internal Security Minister visits the area to make a personal intervention or else be sacked for failing in his job.”
And Okoth who was speaking in Kibuye after presiding over mass called on the government to immediately dispatch a special peace keeping force to Mt Elgon to restore calm, and blamed the government for sitting on the fence as mayhem rocked the area.
At the All Saints Archbishop Nzimbi told President Kibaki and Michuki to intervene personally in the clashes that are threatening to spread to neighbouring parts such as Trans Nzoia and Bungoma.
And archbishop Gaitho, who led an Easter mass at the AIPCA Bahati parish deplored the situation in Mt Elgon and asked the government to use all resources at its disposal to sort it out.
“I am perturbed that our people can still be antagonised to fight and kill each other in the modern era. The government has the responsibility to quell these clashes before they escalate elsewhere,” said archbishop Gaitho.
The same message was echoed by Bishop Emmanuel Okombo (Kericho), Archbishop Makarios Tylilidis of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchal Cathedral in Nairobi, Bishop Peter Kairu of Nakuru Catholic diocese and his Nyeri counterpart John Njue.
But the calls came amid fears that the clashes might spill over into neighbouring Kitale, Saboti and Endebbes area of Trans Nzoia district with Rift Valley Provincial Police Officer, Everett Wasige, expressing fears of a scheme by unknown individuals who he accused of dispatching inflammatory leaflets meant to incite neighbouring communities into joining the clashes.
“We are keenly investigating individuals who have been authoring these leaflets threatening certain ethnic communities to vacate the area or face a similar situation in Mt Elgon. The locals should ignore these leaflets and report to security personnel suspected culprits,” he said, adding that detectives were working on crucial leads to the unearth the identities of the suspects. He said security personnel have been put on high alert following emergence of the leaflets three days ago.
Speaking to Kenya Times on the telephone, Wasige said authors of the leaflets were targeting certain communities within Kitale, Saboti and Endebbes areas that border the clash-torn area of Mt. Elgon district where close to 160 people have been killed and more than 20,000 others displaced.
He said that the government will not relent on cracking down on political leaders who were inciting residents into acts of violence and lawlessness and disclosed that following a major security operation, calm had been restored in parts of Baringo district where armed raids between the Pokots and Njemps left four people killed and scores of others injured.
At the same time Western PC Abdul Mwaserah announced plans for an arms amnesty, adding that the government will have the surrendered firearms received by a team comprising representatives from human rights organisations, Maendeleo Ya Wanawake Organisation and the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK). He said the amnesty period had been extended for three days beginning April 16 to April 18.
Meanwhile a survey we carried out showed an uneasy calm had returned to the area but the situation was being compounded by a humanitarian crisis in the region as residents pointed the finger at politicians for allegedly fuelling the conflict.
Yesterday the Kenya Red Cross Society visited the area for a situation analysis and predicted a humanitarian crisis that stretch up to six months and announced a Sh211 million budget to mitigate the situation through supply of food and non food materials for the period.
According to Mt Elgon Red Cross Relief Officer Morris Onyango, so far, 150 people have died, 60,0000 people displaced and are camping at 28 Internally Displaced People Centres (IDPCs) spread across the expansive district. He said hunger, disease and fear were the three major prevailing hardships the displaced are facing.
He further expressed fears that, as the country gears towards the general election, the situation might even get worse if the government will not have effected strict measures to ensure reconciliation .
The heavy presence of security personnel drawn from the General Service Unit (GSU), the Administration Police and the Regular Police, has also been attributed to the escalating violence with the security agents being accused of waging war on one community, who in turn unleash their frustrations on the other in a series of attacks.
The two worst hit areas are Kaberos and Kapkwes of Cheptais division where by yesterday 200 houses had been set ablaze and food crops (mainly banana plantations) destroyed.
Said James Wasama Kirui, an elder of Kabero: “These police officers are starving us out of the area. They are killing us. Raping our women and defiling our girls. They are even feasting on our livestock. And in all these, we hear that we have an MP. He should be told we are not feeling his leadership.”
The clashes exploded six months ago after the government commenced the third phase of the Chebyuk Settlement Scheme where the Dorobos are said to have benefited in a skewed manner. Area MP Serut is reported to have also brought in his Soi tribesmen supportive of his political cause to benefit in the exercise, which among other factors bred a wave of discontent.
It further emerged that the hiving of the Chebyuk plots was riddled with corruption where an initial 4000 plots were surveyed for allocation, but only 1772 were floated by the government for allocation.
This left 2228 of undeclared plots but which were later allocated to individuals in a corrupt manner hence breeding more conflict in the area pitting the Dorobo and the Soi. Others who have been caught up in the skirmishes are the Tesos and the Bukusus residing in the area as well as visitors .
Elsewhere, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) threatened to call for mass action to force the government to restore law and order in the region. The North Rift Region LSK Chairman Mr Moses Lilan told the government to intervene to save lives and property and accused the government of dragging its feet in the grave matter.
|
