Administrator denies selling Tiaty food aid after locals staged demos
Residents of Tangulbei, Tiaty East protesting against a senior administrator whom they accuse of allegedly selling food aid meant for them, amid an acute shortage in the area owing to the long dry spell and ongoing security operation.
What you need to know:
- But the administrator denied the claims, saying they were part of a witch-hunt by some local politicians who hold a grudge against him in relation to arrests he made during the election campaign period
- He dismissed the accusations as untrue, claiming they were politically instigated to taint his image
A senior government official in Baringo County has denied claims that he sold food aid meant for hunger-ravaged families in the food-insecure Tangulbei, Tiaty East.
It follows peaceful protests staged by some locals who took to the streets on Tuesday, accusing the administrator of colluding with other government officials to sell food as locals in dire need face starvation.
Chanting and waving placards, they claimed that due to the ongoing security operation, no food is allowed to be ferried in the area and the situation is aggravated by the long dry spell.
Led by Symon Shang’iro, they claimed that the administrator sold foodstuffs meant for starving locals and called on the government to intervene.
“There was food aid ferried in three lorries to the area in June when a dusk-to-dawn curfew [was in force] to crack down on armed criminals. At the time, locals were in dire need but to date we are yet to receive them. We are told the same food was ferried by government vehicles towards Marigat town,” Mr Shang’iro claimed.
“A week ago, another consignment was also ferried in five military lorries and was kept in the stores at the administrator’s office. Some locals found the same food being emptied into bags and sold to us at the local shops. We fear that the administrator is trading with food aid at the expense of starving locals.”
Some of the protestors in Tangulbei, Tiaty East. They took to the streets on Tuesday claiming a local administrator was selling food aid meant for starving families.
Denied claims
But the administrator denied the claims, saying they were part of a witch-hunt by some local politicians who hold a grudge against him in relation to arrests he made during the election campaign period.
Reached for comment, he dismissed the accusations as untrue, claiming they were politically instigated to taint his image.
“There are some local leaders from this region who funded and ferried the protesters to Tangulbei with an intent to taint my image,” he said.
“The enmity dates back to the campaign period when I arrested some protesters for causing mayhem in the locality, and the same leaders claimed I was being partisan. I suspect they planned the demonstration to retaliate and put me in a bad light.”
Isaac Adomeyon, an elder, said schools in the region are on the verge of closing owing to the long dry spell that has resulted in an acute food crisis in the area, with the situation worsened by the ongoing gun mop-up drive.
“The relief food was brought in a week ago and it was a matter of urgency to have it distributed to the hunger-ravaged villages and schools,” Mr Adomeyon said.
“Why should the administrator hold them in the store for that long without a proper explanation? It is even shameful that the same State officer, who is supposed to fight for our welfare, is becoming part of the problem by selling food meant for vulnerable people.”
Food in the stores
But the administrator confirmed that the food was still in the stores, indicating that there were proper procedures to be followed when distributing the food to reach the targeted beneficiaries.
“I was planning to meet with the committee to deliberate and map out the beneficiaries in the 14 locations, with the target groups being vulnerable families and schools because it is not enough for the entire population, only for locals to protest that the food had been sold yet it is still in the store,” he said.
The consignment, he said, comprised 400 bags of rice, 720 bags of beans and 200 bags of corned beef.
The protests came against the backdrop of concerns by school heads, who have threatened to shut down schools in Tiaty constituency, citing acute food shortages that hit the area after security roadblocks were set up on major roads.
The roadblocks were mounted as part of the ongoing security operation against bandits in the region.
Punishing locals
But locals and headteachers in Tiaty have complained that the operation is punishing the entire population whose freedom of movement has been curtailed, particularly at roadblocks on the Marigat-Chemolingot road.
They said the roadblocks have prevented them from getting fresh produce from Marigat and other towns.
“The worst-hit are boarding primary and secondary schools. All entry points to Tiaty – Kinyach, Loruk, Tot and Lomut – have been barricaded,” said a school head, who sought anonymity for fear of victimisation.
“If this situation continues, then we have no other choice but to close the schools until normality returns.”
