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{
    "id": 1522487,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1522487/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 263,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Turkana South, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. John Namoit",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "records may not be true, they normally understate the numbers - in 2011, 43 people were killed by the militia. Again, in 2020, Merille bandits suspected to be from Omo in Ethiopia, attacked residents in Todonyang with an intention of raiding livestock. These attacks have caused loss of lives and livelihoods. Again, in 2021, a massacre occurred where foreign militia killed 37 Turkana pastoralists inside the Kenyan territory. Hon. Temporary Speaker, remember again that these figures are understated. The security situation has severely disrupted essential services in the area, significantly impacting development in the region. The current attack has led to loss of lives and property. You can imagine 16 boats were taken away. They promised to return five boats, but they have not yet done so. You can also remember the failure of the Government in June. The Government has either been ignoring some of these conflicts or it has always been using a sweet-talking strategy to calm the situation. Remember again that the Member for Turkana Central raised a Request for Statement in June 2024 when the Kenya Wildlife Service guards killed a fisherman who was trying to eke a living. To-date, no action has been taken by the Government. There is need for them to put in place measures to enhance economic activities within the blue economy sector. People from our neighbouring countries have encroached on Kenyan land, with the support of their authorities, at the expense of peace. The Government of Kenya always ignores or applies sweet-talking strategies in addressing such a critical matter. I have identified a number of challenges that this community is experiencing. One of them is poor network connectivity within that particular area. There is only one Coast Guard surveillance boat with a small capacity. There are only eight Coast Guard surveillance officers. You can imagine all that terrain across the lake has only eight guards with one boat. There are only a few empowered National Police Reservists (NPRs), leave alone the regular uniformed police officers. The NPR personnel are well-versed with the terrain, but they are very few with no facilities to enable them to provide security in the area. The alternative source of livelihood for the fishermen is livestock, which is continuously affected by banditry perpetrated by the same militias. We have been making proposals, including the need to enhance authority. Legitimacy and authority of our Government can only be realised when there is law and order in a society. If the community is not feeling the presence of the Government, members of the public will always take charge to protect themselves and their property. The Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) must establish their presence in that area. The Government should enhance security to encourage offtake of economic activities in those forgotten areas of Kenya. There is also the issue of initiating food security programmes. The Kenya Kwanza regime was elected on a platform of a number of promises, including enhancement of food security across the country. We are proposing an alternative source of livelihood and economic activity for the county. We also propose enhancement of surveillance by the security agencies, and more so increasing the number of Coast Guard personnel in Lake Turkana. We also require enough vehicles, ammunition and food supplies for the security agencies. That is what is required by the men and women in uniform. There is need for the Government to deploy the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) along our borders. The Turkana community always secures our border with three neighbouring countries, but the donkey is now tired. What is the role of the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs in actualising some of the United Nations (UN) Security Council agenda? Kenya is a member of the UN Security Council. I read a statement by the UN Secretary General on UN Security Council and picked the following: “The Security Council reaffirms its commitment to the Charter of the United Nations, including its purposes and principles and the primary responsibility of the The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}