Residents want name 'Burnt Forest' changed

By TITUS TOO

Residents of Burnt Forest want the area renamed as peace initiatives yield fruit in the clash prone Uasin Gishu District.

Residents have proposed a change of name to Tarakwa (Cedar) instead of Burnt Forest, which they say connotes arson.

As proof of restored calm residents cite the August Referendum poll, which was peaceful.

"Burnt Forest has been in the limelight locally and internationally for all the wrong reasons. We now want to break with the past and ensure we co-exist peacefully," said Paul Njuguna, a peace committee member.

Njuguna said the culture of violence has been an economic setback.

Lessons learnt

"We have experienced clashes after every election since 1992. We are now happy because of the peace initiatives that have succeeded," he says.

Daniel Kebenei, an elder, cautioned residents against overreacting on political issues only to regret afterwards.

"We have experienced destruction during elections. It will take even more than 30 years to recover what we have lost," he said.

Locals say the name Burnt Forest was coined following a fire outbreak that completely destroyed a cedar forest in the 1930s.

It is believed the name is associated with fire, prompting the push for adoption of ‘Tarakwa’- Kalenjin for cedar, since peace had been restored.

A check along the Eldoret/Nakuru road in Burnt Forest shows several shells of burnt houses still dot the area. Their owners are either sceptical of the newfound peace or have relocated.