Locals from Turkana County have moved to a Kitale Lands Court seeking to stop an unnecessary subdivision of their land to some people they claim aren’t from the County, and who aren’t involved in matters concerning the County. Led by their Turkana East MP Mohamed Ali Lokiru and his Turkana South counterpart James Lomenen through their lawyer Nelson Havi, they argued that the ongoing fuel drilling activities and partitioning of their land should stop, as they aren’t included in any negotiations.
The case which was mentioned as urgent was before High Court Judge Mwangi Njoroge and is scheduled for hearing on 19th March this year, when the government lawyer and National Land Commission would’ve been served with the petitions.
The two leaders have since vowed they’ll not let the land be partitioned and handed to foreigners, saying they won’t let their ancestral land be given over to projects without their consent, “We won’t let any part of our land be divided by some people who have ill intentions for our County and people without involving us,” said Lomenen.
Lokiru echoed his sentiment and said that many residents in the County aren’t enjoying the fruits of devolution, as they’ve been shunned. The leaders led more than 100 Turkana locals who attended the proceedings in a packed Court, and among the attendees were the County administrators from Turkana County.