Bid to restock depleted livestock fuelling cattle rustling

Administrators on the Meru-Isiolo border are on high alert following a new wave of cattle rustling as some pastoralist communities seek to restock livestock they lost during the dry spell.

Meru County Commissioner Fred Ndunga said the criminal activities started following the onset of rains and that several raiders had stormed the northern grazing zone and driven away dozens of livestock.

Speaking at the Ndumuru market during a security meeting on Monday, he told Eastern Regional Commissioner Evans Achoki that some members of the Meru, Borana, Turkana and Somali communities had illegal firearms, making cattle rustling dangerous.

He suggested that security agencies conduct an operation in the region to mop out the illegal firearms that are aiding livestock theft.

Mr Achoki ordered people with illegal firearms to hand them over, warning that they would face the full force of the government.

“The government will do all that needs to be done to ensure that those with illegal firearms are arrested and prosecuted,” he said. 

“If you have illegal firearms, know that we are coming for you regardless of who you are. You should know that you are an enemy of the people and the government.”
Mr Achoki warned chiefs and their assistants that they faced being sacked if it was established that stolen livestock passed through their areas of jurisdiction.

He urged them to intensify the monitoring of cattle movements.

“When cattle are stolen, you trace them by the footprints. Chiefs and their assistants must be accountable because livestock cannot pass through your area and they are not spotted,” he said.

“I am putting you on notice that if the animals pass through your area and you do not intervene, your jobs will also be lost. I cannot come all the way from Embu to do your work while you are here.” 

But Tigania East MP Mpuru Aburi and his Igembe North counterpart Julius Taitumu said chiefs were disadvantaged because they did not have guns like cattle rustlers and herders.

Stolen animals

Mr Mpuru said sometimes cattle thieves used vehicles to transport stolen animals and were thus difficult to detect.

Tigania West MP John Mutunga also protested that armed camel herders had shot dead residents who killed the animals that were grazing on their farms.

Dr Mutunga accused the government of being complacent about crime in the area, saying local police and intelligence officers knew the criminals who held illegal guns.

He claimed the allocation of national police reservists to Isiolo and Meru was skewed, saying the latter was discriminated against.

“We are being sacrificed. I have lost over 15 people in the last two years. How many more should die [before the government takes] action?” he said.

“The government of Kenya is deliberately negligent when it comes to insecurity in this region because you know who the criminals are but you opt not to take action.”

Igembe Central MP Dan Kiili appealed to the government to stop selling pencil cactus (Euphorbia tirucalli) to camel herders because they fuel criminal activities in the region.

Mr Achoki appealed to farmers not to kill camels that stray onto their farms but instead drive them to police stations so that they can be handed over to their owners.

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