CoG urges govt to deploy military to end Laikipia skirmishes

CoG urges govt to deploy military to end Laikipia skirmishes

The Council of Governors has proposed that the military be deployed to supplement police efforts and put an end to the ongoing skirmishes in Laikipia.

The CoG condemned the bandit attacks in a statement issued on Thursday, comparing the Laikipia situation to the Siguta Valley triangle of the 1980s, which affected at least seven counties.

“The council vehemently condemns the gross violation of human rights by the bandits who are causing a lot of mayhem in Laikipia county,” a statement from the Council’s chairman, Governor Martin Wambora says. 

The council also expressed concern over the ease in which the bandits are able to access firearms. 

According to the council, calm and normalcy were restored in the Siguta triangle in the 1980s only after the National Government of the time deployed military personnel to deal with bandit attacks.

The council urged the government, in a slew of recommendations, to identify and prosecute those responsible for the banditry attacks.

To achieve a long-term solution, the council also wants a disarmament mechanism established, as well as collaborative efforts between the seven counties of Laikipia, Samburu, Baringo, Isiolo, Marsabit, West Pokot, and Turkana.

Meanwhile, Hundreds of families continue to flee their homes, terrorised by the banditry in the Laikipia Nature Conservancy and the surrounding areas.

At least 10 people have so far been killed in the area and dozens others injured in the past two months.

On Wednesday, Former Laikipia North Member of Parliament (MP) Mathew Lempurkel was  arrested over the ongoing banditry attacks at the Laikipia Nature Conservancy and the surrounding areas.

Lempurkel was arrested on Wednesday morning at his home in Rongai, Kajiado County by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.

He was grilled at the DCI headquarters on Kiambu Road and is set to be arraigned at the Milimani Law Courts.

According to Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya, the former Laikipia North MP is one of three suspects believed to be inciting the attacks in Laikipia County.

It is not clear whether the MP will be charged today or detectives will seek more time to detain him.

On Tuesday, bandits in Laikipia put on display their defiance to authority in the Ol Moran area, staging day time attacks in the volatile area as the Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya assessed the damage caused in previous attacks.

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