Kisumu — Kisumu leaders have called for a lasting solution to the perennial flare-ups along the border with Kericho County occasionally triggered with cattle thefts.
The latest conflict left two people dead in Nyakach Sub County leaving a trail of destruction and displacement of families.
Kisumu County Deputy Governor Mathews Owili, Kisumu Senator Prof Tom Ojienda and the County Commissioner Hussein Alason have unanimously agreed to foster a permanent solution to the ever occurring conflicts along the border.
Owili says the government must now put its foot down to bring the warring communities to the table and work out on a possible solution.
"What we are witnessing is occurring annually and it is now time to bring it to a close to stop senseless killings of the people," Owili said.
While visiting the affected families in the Jimo area within Nyakach, the epicenter of the attacks. Owili said government organs must come out to address the sticking issues and float solutions.
He announced that the county government will waive medical bills to the affected people and offer support to the bereaved families.
In the same breadth, Senator Ojienda promised to rebuild the houses that were razed down as he condemned the attacks and called for a speedy solution.
The conflict began after animals were stolen from Nyakach and driven towards Kericho County. Thereafter, the people of Nyakach trailed their animals and brought them back, sparking a confrontation that led to attacks.
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Ojienda says he has reached out to his Kericho county part Aaron Cheruiyot and they have agreed to pursue a lasting solution to the fare-ups.
"This matter must be addressed with a lot of sobriety and I can confirm that my counterpart Cheruiyot is ready for finding a lasting solution," he said.
The Senator said cattle theft that has ever the years prompted border conflicts and the two communities must work on home grown solutions to the problem.
"There is no border issue, the matter at hand is cattle theft being perpetuated by our people in close working relationship with the cattle rustlers," he said.
The County Commissioner noted that security apparatus were deployed to the area to bring normalcy and maintain law and order.
"Our security teams are on the ground to stop any further attacks and we are working closely with our counterparts in Kericho County," he said.
However, he wondered why cattle theft is still rampant despite heavy deployment of government agencies on the ground.
Alason noted that the government has structures including an anti stock theft unit in the area, complete with other agencies starting from the local assistant chief to deal with cattle theft.
"It baffles me, why we are still witnessing cattle theft when the government has invested heavily in security personnel to deal with this menace," he said.
