Dawn raid leaves village in despair

By Robert Kiplagat

Children look up to their parents for a sign of hope that tomorrow will be better than today, but what they see in the blank faces of their mothers and fathers is hopelessness.

These residents of Arabal location of Marigat District, Baringo County, have been living in five primary school compounds for eight days since they ran away from their home last week after rustlers raided the village and drove away 2,000 cattle.

These schools — five primary and one secondary — which have been closed, have become a refuge to more than 4,000 residents who can no longer feel secure in their homes.

Rustlers from neighbouring Pokot East District are said to have attacked the village at 4am, disrupting the people’s life and making them refugees.

No peace

For 30 years, the Arabal residents have not known peace due to the frequent raids.

In the latest incident in Lorumoru village, more than 200 suspected armed rustlers injured one person and stole the livestock.

Locals say the rustlers raided 60 homesteads at dawn, taking them by surprise.

The raiders shot in the air to scare away anybody trying to stop their mission. A Form Two student, who had gone out to find out what the commotion was all about, had his leg shot.

This raid has raised tension between the two communities. Local leaders led by Arabal/Chebinyiny ward councillor Kimunyan Meja accused the area provincial administration and security agencies of laxity in dealing with rampant insecurity in the area.

Meja said locals were fleeing their homes fearing for their lives since the Government cannot guarantee their security.

Insecurity, he said, has derailed development in the area.

“We had informed the local DC’s office, the OCPD and County Commissioner early enough that the raiders were planning an attack but they took no action despite giving promises that they will deal with the issue,” decried Kimunyan.

Baringo County Commissioner, Benard Leparmarai, has however given a seven-day ultimatum to four chiefs in Tangulbei Division, East Pokot District, to produce the stolen livestock and the culprits immediately failure to which they risk losing their jobs. But they are yet to do so.

A number of people have been killed since 2005 as a result of rustling, he said adding that losing livestock — the people’s only source of livelihood — to cattle rustlers leaves them poorer and desperate.

Area residents who spoke to The Standard expressed fear of more attacks if security is not improved.

Stamp out

“How can we continue living here when we are not assured of our safety? We are now moving with our remaining belongings to safer grounds though we do not know exactly where we are going,” said Wilson Wendot, desperately.

Despite being attacked regularly by the rustlers for decades, says Wendot, there is no visible plan of stamping out the menace.

Some of the villagers have moved in with friends and relatives in neighbouring villages such as Kasiela and Mochongoi while many others are at the primary schools.
Teachers and their pupils have also left the area to seek refuge elsewhere.

This incident has affected candidates preparing for this year’s national examinations as primary schools Kapindasum, Arabal, Chemorong’ion, Lorumoru, Kasiela and Arabal Day Secondary Schools remained empty since Monday last week when the village was attacked.

Kapindasum Primary School head teacher, Francis Chebotibin said: “All the five primary schools have been closed. Our candidates might register poor performance in the coming exams due to this interruption.”

Chebotibin now wants the Government to step in and ensure the residents return to their homes and learning resumes.

Some of the candidates who spoke to The Standard say if the situation does not change, they might not sit the coming national examination.

Tracy Jerop, 14, and Richard Komen,15, who are candidates at Kapindasum Primary School, say this interruption may make them post poor results if at all they sit the exams.

“Since last Monday, I have not attended school. There are no classes going on,” says Jerop, despair in her voice.

Jerop says it is not the first time she is out of school due to rustling  and she has spent many days in school agonising about ‘what if?’ rustlers attacked her family.

Insecurity reigns

Knut Baringo Branch executive secretary Charles Kamuren among other local leaders visited the displaced.

“How does the Government expect the candidates in this area to sit the same examination with others in secure environments? No teacher or student can risk his or her life to attend classes.”

As an effort to stem out cattle rustling, leaders, elders and provincial administrators from the pastoralist Pokot, Tugen, Turkana and Illchamus communities have held several peace meetings but their suggestions have never been implemented and insecurity continues to reign.

For example, early this year, eight people were killed,14 schools closed and thousands of livestock stolen after suspected Pokot raiders attacked Baringo North District.