- NCIC has appealed to political leaders from Kericho and Kisumu to help in ending clashes.
- It has also urged the Ministry of Interior to heighten security in the area to avert loss of more lives and destruction of property.
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National Cohesion and Integration Commission has appealed to political leaders from the two counties of Kericho and Kisumu to help in ending the inter-ethnic clashes in the area.
Terming the fights ‘ethnic cleansing’, the Commission chairperson told the leaders to put the interest of the country forth and work together to restore peace.
“We are calling upon political leadership of both Kisumu and Kericho counties to appeal to their followers and cease hostilities,” reads the statement signed by NCIC chairman Samuel Kobia.
While condemning the fights which have continued to leave a trail of deaths, Kobia also urged the Ministry of the Interior to heighten security in the area to avert the loss of more lives and the destruction of property.
The inter-ethnic fights which began at the Sondu border on July 12, this year, according to Kobia have seen eight people killed with 18 others being seriously injured.
“We request for calm and tolerance through relevant law enforcement agencies to enable dialogue and mediations,” he said.
He also appealed to the residents of the two communities to exercise tolerance and use the relevant channels to air their grievances.
The Commission, he said, has since put in place an elaborate program to address the emerging issues bordering on resource sharing, ethnic animosity and political alignments.
He cited the ethnic clashes which he said had prevailed in Mandera County and which have since been de-escalated due to the continuous engagement with different stakeholders.
“As a Commission, we are cognizant to the fact that there are situations where protracted conflicts are being resolved peacefully,” the statement read.
The fights between the two communities living in the Sondu border of the two counties have been going on for years now.
Security has since been heightened in the area as it emerged that the clashes continue.
Kisumu County Security team led by county commissioner Hussein Alason Hussein visited the area Wednesday following the Tuesday night raid which left three people killed.
The attackers are said to have invaded the East Kadiang'a Location in Upper Nyakach Division night.
Upper Nyakach Assistant County Commissioner Darwin Orina said several people are still nursing arrow and machete wounds following the attack.