We are neglected, North Kenya MPs say

• MPs say most parts of the area lack essential services since the government has ignored the province for decades.

A group of legislators from Northern Kenya have accused the government of marginalising the region.

The MPs said most parts of the area lacked essential services since the government has ignored the province for decades.

Led by deputy House Speaker Farah Maalim, the MPs said the region had lagged behind in terms of development since independence.

"Northern Kenya remains the most underdeveloped region of the country that has always received very little attention from the successive governments since independence," he said at the Pan Afric Hotel in Nairobi during a consultative meeting on the research report on the dilemma of citizenship in Northern Kenya by the region's members of parliament in collaboration with the Kenya Human Rights Commission.

"It is only in times of conflicts that the area is heard of.”

He took issue with the issuance of national identity cards saying the process was flawed and encouraged corruption in the region as most youth failed to obtain the identity cards despite reaching the mandatory age of 18.

This, according to him, had made several Kenyan Somalis to be foreigners in their own country.

"Many youth fail to get IDs in the region because of marginalization as most of them are screened too much by registration officers who assume that most of the youth are from the neighbouring countries".

He said even the international community, including international organisations, have not spared the Northern residents as they have refused to give jobs to area residents.

Northern Kenya Development assistant minister Mr Hussein Sasura said the government had made an effort in recognising the region by creating the ministry but said the budgetary allocation should be increased.

He said the money allocated could not manage several projects that are required in the area.

"Sh 400 million cannot even sustain one water project in the region...this can only manage supervisory issues," he said adding: "the government should increase the allocation".

On security matters, the leaders urged the government to stop sending police officers and military personnel to the region to terrorise innocent residents.

Mr Sasura said most people had suffered at the hands of ruthless military personnel who treat everybody of Somali origin in the area with suspicion.

He said the issue of "collective punishment" of the Kenya-Somalis in North Eastern province, whenever there is unrest in the region, as well as other parts of the country, by Kenyan security forces should stop.

Former Mandera Central MP Billow Kerrow wondered why military personnel have not been sent to parts of Central Kenya to track down suspected Mungiki followers.

He said Central Kenya was currently the most insecure part in the country yet no military has been sent there.

"Why is it that the army has not been sent there?" he asked.

Other present were Samburu East MP Mr Raphael Letimalo and his Turkana South counterpart Mr Josphat Nanok.