Nairobi, Kenya, June 7 – The Government has frozen the creation of new administration units – sub-locations, locations, divisions, and sub-counties, as units of service delivery in Eastern and Northeastern Regions and land adjudications along counties’ boundaries in the regions until after the August general elections.
Interior CS Fred Matiang’i said Tuesday, that the decision was informed by what he termed as the “need to avoid milking political capital out of the exercises and avoiding exacerbating ethnic, clan and other potential disagreements around the process.”
Speaking in Isiolo after chairing a meeting of security chiefs from Meru and Isiolo counties, Matiang’i expressed concern over what he termed as the politicization of boundary issues.
“There is a challenge of a boundary between Meru and Isiolo. It is a challenge because of attempts on both sides to politicize an issue that has no politics at all because under the act the boundaries are very well defined,” Matiang’i said.
A number of counties in the regions have been experiencing cross-border conflicts around disputed boundaries and access to resources such as land, pasture and water.
The affected counties include Meru-Isiolo, Meru-Tharaka Nithi, Isiolo-Garissa, Kitui-Tana River, Makueni-Taita Taveta and Makueni-Kajiado.
He pointed out that it is not in the place of administrators to discuss matters touching on boundaries noting that they work strictly according to the prescription of the Act.
The Interior CS further noted that the government will review the deployment of security agencies operating along the boundaries of Meru and Isiolo counties as part of measures to prevent further conflicts.
“The Inspector General and Deputy Inspector General are going to put in a team, working together jointly with security team in Meru and Isiolo to look relook the deployment and placement of this unit so that we create sufficient and effective buffer to ensure that interactions between the two counties are peaceful,” he said.
Matiang’i said that in the wake of environmental challenges, the government had developed new structures of resource sharing to esnure peace in the event the communities share the unlimited resources.
In some instances, the boundaries conflicts have turned deadly resulting to loss of lives and displacement of people.
Matiang’i further attributed the insecurity challenges in the region to proliferation of illegal arms.
The interior CS said that the government is committed to preventing loss of lives in the country due to conflicts.
“Our determination as Government remains minimizing avenues for conflict to zero so that our country can be peaceful even as we go through this election season,” he said.
Matiang’i was accompanied by Inspector General of police Hillary Mutyambai and other senior security chiefs.
