Photo taken on August 28, 2013 shows internally displaced people (IDPs) at a camp in Moyale/XINHUA
The leaders led by Marsabit Governor Ukur Yattani said tension is still high in the area with cases of insecurity being reported leading to closure of businesses.
North Horr MP Chachu Ganya urged the government to speed up the deployment of the military to Moyale to contain the rising ethnic animosity there.
Parliament on Thursday okayed the deployment of the Kenya Defence Forces to restore peace in Moyale, Pokot and Turkana areas.
“We are appealing to the people of Moyale to end this bloodletting so that we can move on together,” he said even as he complained of difficulties of getting the all the leaders from region to the dialogue table.
“I am appealing to the residents of Moyale to lay down their arms and go back to their homes. How do they expect to get to the level of counties such as Muranga?” asked Marsabit County Woman Representative Amina Hassan. “We have always complained that the central government has been ignoring our plight, yet now that we have devolved governments, we are the same people who are standing on the road to development.”
Ganya said he was concerned over an impending humanitarian crisis if the residents do not have access to food aid and other social amenities.
“We are appealing to the government to set up a task force that will uncover the underlying factors causing all this recurring bloodshed so that we can address it once and for all,” he said.
Hassan claimed the fighting is due to political incitement and called for political leaders to be investigated.
“I would like to ask the government to summon and record statements from all the local leaders starting from Governor all the way to the County Assembly representative. Let us not deceive each other yet we know we are the cause of what is happening,” said the Marsabit County Woman Representative.
Kenya Red Cross Secretary General Abbas Gullet who also attended the news conference said he feared that the number of causalities and fatalities may escalate if the violence is not quelled.
“We are saying when there is a bit of a lull can they give us the opportunity to go and retrieve the wound people that need assistance,” said Gullet.
Several people are reported to have died and many more injured but no official figures have been released.
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