Residents of Baringo County have petitioned MPs to intervene and find declaration of Mukutani Forest was in contravention of the Constitution.
In a petition presented on their behalf by Baringo Woman Rep Florence Jematia, the residents said the area is and continues to be occupied by three communities; Pokot, Tugen and Ilchamus.
“There is no forest in the area described by the Cabinet Secretary in the Legal Notice No 265,” they maintained.
The petitioners said they were not involved in the decision of the then Cabinet Secretary Judy Wakhungu contained in Legal Notice No 265, dated October 27, 2017.
“The area described in the schedule to Legal Notice No 265 is a community land by dint of Article 63 of the Constitution of Kenya,” the petitioners said.
In the Notice, the Cabinet Secretary decreed that the forest covers approximately 13, 185 hectares.
The residents pointed out that under Section 31 (2) of the Forest Conservation and Management Act 2016 before declaring any section as a public forest, the Cabinet Secretary is required to consult the National Land Commission.
They further noted that the Second Schedule of the Forest Conservation and Management Act 2016 makes provisions for public participation.
The petitioners further said their elected representatives were also not consulted when the decision was being made.
The petitioners added that the alleged designation of the area as a forest poses an existential threat to communities and requires urgent intervention of the House to avert conflict.
They prayed that the House intervenes and finds that the process leading to the declaration of Mukutani Forest as a public forest was done in brazen and egregious contravention of the Constitution and Forest Conservation and Management Act, 2016.
