Former Meru Governor Peter Munya has called for the operationalise the Nyambene National Reserve, which has the potential to curb cattle rustling and banditry in northern Meru.
He said the defunct Nyambene County Council had allocated vast land in northern Meru for the establishment of Nyambene Conservancy, but it had not been implemented by the government.
Munya said those opposed to the plan were not well-meaning, as implementing the conservancy had been a viable solution in addressing persistent cattle rustling and banditry.
Munya, who was flanked by Meru Assembly Minority Whip Dennis 'DMK' Kiogora, former Assembly Majority Leader Victor Karithi, and other leaders, said a conservancy would have made it possible to secure the area against marauding cattle rustlers from neighbouring counties, as well as benefit the locals after the development of tourist attraction sites.
"Nyambene (reserve) is already there. It was gazetted. The Nyambene county council, because of the same problem of banditry, wanted to create a buffer zone in that area so that we (Meru) can have a conservancy just like conservancies surround people in Isiolo," Munya said.
He said when he was governor (2013-2017), he made efforts to have the Nyambene Conservancy implemented.
His administration had county rangers trained by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) at Manyani and stationed them in the area, which teems with big and small game and boasts of numerous attractions, including the scenic Igombe crater.
Mr Munya said his regime had wanted to tap into the tourism potential of the area when it partnered with KWS and trained the 30 rangers to protect the wildlife and locals.
He had urged the people to embrace the idea of the conservancy and take advantage of the opportunities it created, but he regretted that the proposal was not implemented after his defeat in the 2017 election.
"That (operationalisation of conservancy) was planned. It did not happen. It was a viable solution to secure the area."
Munya said it was a major failure by the government not to address persistent rustling and banditry, which he said had cost over 100 lives in the last three years and led to the loss of over 11,000 livestock in the same period.
"We know this government is incapable of implementing anything. Since it took over, what has it implemented in Meru? There are no security roads in the Nyambene area, which makes it hard to track down rustlers," he said.
But he said the implementation of the conservancy would have gone a long way in addressing the cattle rustling and banditry, as well as empowering locals economically due to tourism facilities that would have come up in the affected regions.
“The Nyambene Conservancy will beef up the area against cattle rustlers."
Dr. Sarah Kilemi, a community leader, said the menace of cattle rustling had affected livelihoods as many had been forced to vacate their farms due to the insecurity.
"The bandits are raping the women in the farms and impoverishing families. The government has failed to protect the people," she said.
