Land problems to blame for orgy of killings in Narok

Failure to demarcate land and issue title deeds over the years is the main cause of communal violence in Narok South, leaders and residents say.

Many settlers bought land from group ranches such as Enosookon, Reiyo, Sisiyan, Enakishomi and Nkaroni.

The settlers claim to have bought land with approval from relevant government agencies but conflicts arose when it took long to process the ownership documents.

A majority of those who sold their land have since died. Their children, who were young at the time of the sale, took over the plots, further complicating the dispute.

“Some of the children have turned against the buyers, claiming they were not privy to the land transactions,” Mr Hillary Matelong, a resident of Olmekenyu, told the Nation.

“Many want the money used to buy the land converted to lease and the farms reverted to them.”

FRAUD CASES

Some of those who fell victim to the evictions had sold plots in their ancestral homes in neighbouring counties and migrated to Narok many years ago since land here was fertile and relatively cheap.

“In the 1980s, locals were only keeping beef cattle while the settlers grew maize, potatoes, beans, cabbage and horticultural crops. Some kept dairy cows,” Mr Wilson Sigei, a resident of Sogoo, said.

Administrators and elders have also been blamed for failing to address fraud, with several people being duped into buying same pieces of land.

Drawn-out court cases relating to fraud are many. Others are being handled by elders and local administrators.

Over the years, the settlers’ numbers grew and residents sold them more land. Infrastructural development was done by the national government and local authorities.

More than 30 schools are affected by the clashes that began several days ago.

LEARNING INTERRUPTED

Education officials say about 5,000 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examinations candidates may fail to sit for the tests since teachers or the learners themselves have been displaced.

Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers Narok branch executive secretary Charles Ngeno said he wonders why the government built schools and posted teachers in the area, only for the institutions to be razed later.

“It is really sad. Innocent children have not attended classes because their schools have been shut or destroyed. Others have lost their books and uniforms to demolitions and arson. Some children have been killed or injured,” the unionist said.

“The government must build roads in the affected areas. Remember the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission used the schools and churches as polling stations and tallying centres in 2007, 2013 and 2017. What suddenly changed for the same government to declare the schools illegal?”

PREACHING UNITY

Meanwhile, the eviction and clashes have divided leaders, reducing the efforts to end the skirmishes into an endless blame-game.

Narok Governor Samuel Tunai has urged leaders to refrain from inflammatory utterances on the evictions, forest rehabilitation efforts and clashes.

“It is the duty of leaders to unite the people and find a lasting solution to the problems affecting our region,” Mr Tunai said.

He added that leaders and locals should understand that there are no winners in clashes.

“Both sides have lost property valued at millions of shillings, people have been killed and injured, families displaced and schools closed,” the governor said.

Narok Senator Ledama olé Kina and Narok North MP Moitalel olé Kenta have been vocal about the evictions, saying residents have protected the natural resource for decades.

“We cannot allow the forest which our forefathers protected to be plundered by settlers who have no regard to conservation. We are fully behind the efforts to kick out the families and rehabilitate the forest,” the senator said.

“Rivers and streams have been drying up and we cannot bury our heads in the sand when the county is staring at a catastrophe.”

HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

Mr Kenta said those who sold land to the settlers and the government officials who processed title deeds should be held to account.

“Clearly, those people are known. They excised parts of the forest illegally and issued title deeds. For strange reasons, the officials are still roaming free,” the lawmaker said.

Ms Lydia Ntimama Masikonde, a local leader, termed the clashes retrogressive. She said the two communities have lived side by side for generations and even intermarried.

“It is important for leaders and the government to bring the two communities together but we must also take a stand on environmental conservation,” Ms Masikonde said.

Melelo Ward Representative Philemon Aruasa said the affected families are in dire need of humanitarian support.

“Residents cannot get to hospitals in towns since the roads are closed. Suspicion and tension have hindered interaction between people from the warring communities and there is need for reconciliation,” Mr Aruasa said.

CONSERVATION

He added that settlers are not opposed to conservation as has been reported.

“The government and environmental agencies should provide them with seedlings to be planted on private farmlands in order to increase forest cover,” the politician said.

Mr Edwin Birech, an elder, said cattle rustling has gone down in the area mainly because of the infrastructure put up by the national and county governments.

“Moving from one area to another has become easy due to the construction and improvement of roads. The emergence of mobile phones has also played a role in reducing animal theft. The ones being reported are isolated cases,” Mr Birech said.

Narok County Commissioner George Natembeya issued a warning against perpetrators of violence, saying detectives have already identified inciters “who will soon be arrested and prosecuted”.

“Those involved in the clashes should know that the law will catch up with them,” the county chief said.

“Those who sold land around Mau forest will also be made to account for their deeds.”

Mr Natembeya said the evictions are well-thought-out government programmes, “which will be implemented despite opposition from some politicians”.