Families left in the cold as demolitions enter second day
Ms Defence Machocho ponders her next move after her house was demolished by the government at Ndovuni area in Maungu, Taita Taveta County on September 8, 2021.
Security officers in Maungu, Taita Taveta County, on Thursday continued demolishing houses to evict more than 1,000 people living on disputed land.
For the second day running, families who had occupied the land since 1990 watched in despair as bulldozers flattened their homes, with armed police, GSU and KWS officers providing security.
The demolitions followed a notice to the squatters to move out of the land, which is said to be within Tsavo East National Park.
The government had warned the squatters in June about the impending demolitions, and while some families left, others stayed put, prompting the forcible eviction.
Some people had little time to remove their property before the houses were brought down.
Esther Wakesho, one of the affected residents, said they were staying in the homes of well-wishers as they sought alternative homes.
"I have lost my items in the rubble. Sadly, we have not received any help from the government and our leaders," she said.
Ms Veronica Wambugu speaks to journalists after her house was demolished at Ndovuni in Maungu area, Taita Taveta County. Over 3,000 squatters were left homeless after their houses were demolished by the government on September 8, 2021.
"We are being told to move out with no alternative place to go to. I do not have money to move to a new house."
Government officials said the squatters lived inside Tsavo East National Park.
Voi Deputy County Commissioner Daniel Nduti said the squatters posed a security threat because they lived near the Standard Gauge Railway line.
Human-wildlife conflicts
He said they were also a threat to wildlife because they blocked the movement of animals and thus escalated human-wildlife conflicts in the area.
He said the squatters argued that the land belonged to their forefathers and had repeatedly ignored eviction notices.
He insisted that the disputed land belongs to the government and the evicted families will not be compensated.
But the families said a court order had barred the eviction.
"I have never seen any written notice. The chiefs have been telling us to move out but there is an active court case that is yet to be determined," said Mohammed Ahmed.
The father of six said he had nowhere to go and condemned the eviction.
The squatters said the government had not given them ample time to find alternative land.
Nancy Nishira said her family had nowhere to go and no money to move their household items.
A house that was demolished following an eviction exercise on KWS land at Maungu area in Taita Taveta County on September 8, 2021.
"We will stay put. I have no alternative but to stay in the cold and wait for a miracle with my children," she said.
Taita Teveta Lands executive Mwandawiro Mghanga visited the area to ascertain the number of families affected by the eviction.
He condemned the eviction, saying the national government had not consulted county officials to find alternative land for the affected families.
He said the demolitions were inhumane and urged the national government to prepare a resettlement plan for the families.
"The government should settle evictees because they have nowhere to go," he said.
