Residents of Garbatula Sub County in Isiolo County have appealed to government authorities to flush out camel herders from the neighboring Garissa County over a recent spate of killings in the area attributed to their presence in the area.
Speaking to Journalists following a meeting with the Sub County Security Team held at Kinna Tuesday, elders from the area lamented that they welcomed their neighbors alongside herders from other regions such as Sericho, Marsabit, and Moyale during the recent drought season, but those from Garissa have since refused to leave and go back to their home county despite rains that ensured the presence of pasture everywhere.
Ali Boru, an elder from Kinna noted that at least six people have been killed in different areas of Garbatula Sub county over the last one month, with the deaths including that of a 15 year old school girl who was killed at Kinna two weeks ago all being linked to the armed illegal herders.
He said that herders from other areas including Marsabit and Moyale who grazed in the area during the drought season have since thanked locals and returned to their home counties, but those from Garissa have stayed put and caused problems to the people of Garbatula including deaths.
Isiolo South Member of Parliament Mohamed Tubi who also attended yesterday’s meeting noted that there was absolutely no point in having herders from Garissa continuing to graze in Isiolo to-date, despite the presence of pasture in their traditional grazing areas, a matter that is causing tension among locals, amid fears among Isiolo herders that the invading herders are out to displace them and take over the land.
Tubi called for calm and asked members of the Garbatula Sub County security team to move with speed and expedite the request by Garbatula elders to have the invading herders evicted back to their home county.
He warned that the continued stay of camel herders from Garissa amid recent killings in the area was a recipe for clashes, arguing that the camel herders must be flushed out of the area in order to ensure that the local population feel safe.
The legislator also noted that the recent spate of insecurity cases in the area could also be a ploy to derail the construction of the road linking Isiolo to Garissa and Mandera through Modogashe, arguing that locals in the area were fully behind the project that is expected to open up the region for business and major economic growth.
Garbatula Deputy County Commissioner Stephen Nyakundi called for collaboration between members of public and the security team in order to effectively address security challenges in the area.
He noted that lack of communication network in areas such as Rapsu and Korbesa was a major setback in addressing crime incidents in the areas in a timely manner, since security teams get information several hours after a crime has been committed and attackers left.
He however noted that the matter is currently being addressed and that the affected areas will soon have mobile network coverage.
He asked members of public to work with National Government Administration Officers in the area and furnish his office with information regarding the identity of the said camel owners and where the camels are being grazed, so that the security team acts on the matter decisively from a point of knowledge.
Kinna ward of Garbatula sub county in Isiolo County hosted herders from other drought stricken areas in the region since it was the only area that had received substantial rains over the last few years, making it rich with pasture unlike other areas of Isiolo and neighboring counties.
