Suspicion and mistrust in North Rift

As the reconciliation process goes on following the post-election violence, suspicion and mistrust still run deep in the North Rift which was hit hard by the hostilities. Suspicion remains high among communities residing in the otherwise cosmopolitan area with some of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) still in transit camps due to insecurity fears, long after the government launched the resettlement programme ‘‘Operation Rudi Nyumbani’’.

“Reconciliation efforts are yet to take root in the region. The communities are still suspicious of each other and any criminal activity committed by a member of one of the communities against a member of the other community can easily lead to renewed animosity,” said Mr James Kosgei, a resident of Burnt Forest, which has witnessed violence in virtually every General Election.

Animosity

The claims of ‘‘underlying animosity’’ amongst communities in the region were demonstrated early this week when two communities almost clashed following the killing of a motorcycle taxi operator on the outskirts of Eldoret town.

Government officials and security personnel had to intervene to forestall an impending clash between the two communities embroiled in a dispute over the circumstances that led to the killing of the 24-year-old operator Wilson Kiprop whose body was found in a maize plantation.

A meeting called to reconcile the two communities ended in disarray after a drunken man walked to the venue claiming that he had been attacked by members of the rival community.

Aborted meeting

Going by the emotions that characterised the aborted meeting, the killing is just but one of the many factors that have contributed to the deep mistrust between the two rival communities. “Both the Government and civil societies have done little to reconcile communities in the region despite having spent a lot of money on the programme,” Mary Chelagat from Eldoret said.

Although the killing has been treated as a normal crime and three suspects arrested, the matter has taken ethnic dimensions with one community claiming it was done out of revenge. “We need to co-exist harmoniously and police should move swiftly and arrest those who are out to use crime to derail reconciliation efforts,” one of the elders, Mr Mwangi Warihia, said.

A committee of elders from the two rival communities has been formed to deliberate on how to find lasting peace in the area. However, some of the issues that require urgent attention are the beefing of security and resettlement of the IDPs still in satellite camps.

The residents accuse the security team in Uasin Gishu district of abetting crime and engaging in corruption. They blame laxity among the security personnel for the upsurge in criminal activities that have led to the killing of several people in the past few months. “It is regrettable that more than 10 deaths have occurred in the area in the past few months yet police have done little to contain the situation,” clerics from the North Rift region, who have joined calls for beefing up of security in the area, said.

Clerics from more than 10 denominations led by the Rev Geoffrey Songok (Reformed Church of East Africa), Bishop Cornelius Korir (Catholic), Bishop Thomas Kogo (ACK), Bishop Julius Maina (Destiny Church) and leaders from PCEA and Akorino churches, among others, cautioned against ethnisising criminal activities.

However, the local community, led by Eldoret South MP Peris Simam, has demanded the overhaul of the security team in the region, especially in Wareng district, accusing the officers of being partisan.