New road to help fight banditry and open up region for development

Elgeyo Marakwet governor Wisley Rotich when he commissioned the construction of Tangul-Kamologon road on Friday. [Stephen Rutto, Standard]

The county government of Elgeyo Marakwet has started constructing what will be the first-ever road in the banditry-controlled zone near its border with West Pokot.

County authorities said the Tangul-Kamologon road is primed to open up the remote Kamologon for development, within Embobut forest, which has been a hideout for bandits for many years.

The access road, whose construction started on Friday, July 21, 2023, was launched as the volatile border area witnessed a three-month relative calm.

In 2018, security bosses in Elgeyo Marakwet and West Pokot declared the region dangerous after reports of bandits, capitalizing on the inaccessibility of the forested area, hiding stolen livestock in the woodland while using it as a base to plan brutal attacks.

Grant access

On Friday, Governor Wisley Rotich said the new road will connect Kapyego in Elgeyo Marakwet and West Pokot County, and would grant security apparatus access to bandits’ dens.

The construction of Tangul-Kamologon road comes after the county government opened the 18-kilometre Kapchoge-Chepkoit road, which connects Kapyego and Embobut wards in another attempt to increase accessibility and tame insecurity.

“The new access is expected to improve accessibility and address security challenges in the area. This is the county’s contribution to the restoration of calm in this area,” Rotich said.

The county chief said bandits often escaped into the forest after killing people and stealing livestock, especially in the Kapyego and neighbouring areas.

"Even armed security personnel could not dare pursue bandits deep into Kamologon because the area is vast and with no road network. Once the bandits disappeared inside the remote area, police officers had little to do,” the governor said.

He added: “We are confident that the new road will open up the area and security officers will be able to conduct patrols and flush out armed criminals and recover stolen livestock for years."

Neglected zone

Residents who lost livestock to suspected bandits hiding in the neglected zone expressed hope of long-lasting calm, and urged the national government to establish more roads in the area.

Simon Chepkutwo, a resident from Tangul, said improved road networks should be part of peace efforts.

"There was a road that was constructed in the area in 1969 but lacked maintenance. Apart from helping security apparatus tame banditry, this new road will also help us transport our farm produce to markets,” said Chepkutwo.

He said bandits have been using the forest to torment residents while dodging the police.

"Immediately they get into the forest, it becomes difficult for security officers to trace them. They just disappear with the stolen livestock," added Mr Chepkutwo.

Fight against banditry

Mary Kemboi, another resident of Tangul, an area adjacent to the forest, welcomed the construction of the new road describing it as a major step in the fight against banditry.

"This is the right move. For the first time, I have seen seriousness in tackling banditry in Kamologon," said Mrs Kemboi.

She continued: "Some of us had lost hope in government efforts to fight cattle theft. Bandits had taken over the forest. We had ceased fetching firewood and herbal medicine from the forest. We urge the police to scale up their patrols when the road is ready."

Kapyego MCA Joseph Chebet said most businesses had closed in the area as a result of banditry and hoped that the new road would help address the runaway insecurity in the area.