Herders who have invaded private farms in Kitui, Meru, Laikipia and other parts of the country have been ordered to leave immediately or face forceful eviction.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof. Kithure Kindiki said the government had declared a ‘total war’ on the invasions and warned that police will be deployed with explicit instructions to use maximum force if necessary to get the pastoralists out of farms and other places.
Invasions in Mwingi in Kitui County, Igembe in Meru and Ol-Moran in Laikipia among other areas have recently sparked violent clashes between herders and local farmers leading to deaths and injuries.
Speaking after a whirlwind tour of flashpoints in the three counties, the CS said with the onset of the rainy season, herders could no longer hide behind the search for pasture and water to invade private farms and warned the government will not brook the politicisation of crackdown.
“The truth is that criminals are just criminals. They have no tribe or political affiliation. As a government, we are prepared to lose votes if that will be the cost of securing the lives and properties of Kenyans from unwarranted aggression.”
He said the government will no longer negotiate with the invaders who have defied repeated pleas to leave and assured the police of protection against possible retribution for enforcing the evictions.
The CS urged security agents to deal ruthlessly with the invaders including the use of firearms where necessary to evict the pastoralists and to defend themselves against some of whom he described as “armed and dangerous.”
“The guns you have are neither flowers nor ornaments. They are the property of the Government that has entrusted them to you to protect the lives and properties of citizens and yourselves from criminals and other rogue elements.”
Speaking in Mandongoi Primary School in Mwingi North Constituency, the CS who was accompanied by area leaders urged pastoralists to respect host communities and their property.
“No one has permission to graze their livestock wherever they want without the consent of the owners of those fields. All the grazers and herds people must leave this place before we get to them,” Prof. Kindiki said.
The directive follows recent flare-ups between armed herders and local farmers who accuse the pastoralists of deliberately driving camels and other livestock into farms and thereby destroying crops.
The CS said that a crack operation has been launched to back up the directive until the last herder is driven out.
He said sufficient financial, material and human resources will be made available to ensure compliance with the directive.
“I want to challenge the criminals who think they have better weapons, tactics or instruments of violence than the government to dare face us. We will follow them anywhere they are. We won’t leave this area until we end this menace.”
Prof. Kindiki further directed the immediate recruitment and training of 250 National Police Reservists (NPR) to beef up security in the area to complement the operations of other security personnel already on the ground.
At another meeting in Kinisa, Igembe Central in Mderu County, the CS ordered the immediate recruitment and training of 174 NPRs to add to the existing 26 deployed in the area.
He said the 200 officers will complement the specialised police units including the GSU, RDU and ASTU sent to the greater Igembe and Tigania regions in the country to combat cattle rustling and general insecurity.
A similar directive was issued in Ol-Moran in Laikipia North Constituency where another 360 officers will be hired and trained within 10 days to match the number already hired.
Prof. Kindiki however cautioned area residents against taking the law into their hands saying they risked legal consequences for their acts and that such acts could fuel retaliatory attacks.
The CS also said the Government will immediately release Ksh1 million for the completion of a police post under construction in the area to host more police officers to be deployed in the area.
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