Bandits, security operation in Baringo paralyse hospitals
Mukutani Health Center in Baringo South which was abandoned in 2017 due to insecurity. Its doors and windows have been vandalised by armed criminals.
Health services in insecurity-prone areas of Tiaty and Baringo South sub-counties have been hampered after hospitals were closed due to a spate of banditry attacks.
The situation is also bad in Tiaty East and Tiaty West sub-counties — which are under the ongoing security operation — after health workers fled the areas for fear of their lives.
Among the affected facilities include Tuwo, Akwichatis, Toplen, Nakoko, Riong’o, Chepkalacha, Katikit, Kositei, Chemoril, Nasorot and Komolion in Tiaty and Mukutani health centres in Baringo South Sub-county.
Reports indicate that hundreds of locals in the zoned areas have fled their homes over what they say is harassment by security officers deployed in the area to mop up illegal guns and smoke out armed criminals.
An abandoned hospital bed at Mukutani Health Center in Baringo South. The hospital was closed due to a spate of banditry attacks.
Closed since 2017
In the insecurity-prone Mukutani in Baringo South, the only health centre has been closed since 2017 when flare-ups erupted between two neighbouring communities living in the area, prompting locals and workers in the area to flee to safer areas.
Mukutani Location Chief Benjamin Lecher said locals have been depending on the military and General Service Unit (GSU) officers deployed in the area for treatment at their camps.
According to the administrator, the closed facility, which used to serve over 6,000 locals, is now a shell of its former self after it was vandalised by armed criminals and some of the doors and windows removed away.
When it was operational, the health centre used to serve residents of Mukutani, Lendorok, Kabikoki, Laitapak, Akule, Ilmeut, Lelerai, Nairabala, Cheptangarmet, Chemoigut, Loromoru,Lemaitai, Rine, Sosian, Lorukon and Lontiani villages.
“The health centre has remained closed since 2017 when flare-ups between Ilchamus and Pokot communities in the area erupted, leaving more than 10 people dead in a night attack, thus prompting locals to flee the porous area. To date, the facility is not operational,” said Mr Lecher.
Covid-19 pandemic
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, locals in the remote area have not seen or worn protective gear such as masks, leave alone hearing of a vaccine against the virus.
The facility, which is some few meters from the trading centre, is now a no go zone as it is overgrown with shrubs, making it a good hideout for criminals who normally stage attacks in the area.
Betty Lakangaran, a resident, claimed that young children, who are at the risk of contracting diseases, have not received vaccination, leave alone treatment, since 2017.
Some of the rooms at at Mukutani Health Center in Baringo South whose doors have been vandalised by criminals.
Emergencies
“We receive treatment of mild ailments from security officers’ camps deployed to beef up security but it is a challenge in case of an emergency, especially young children and expectant women with complications,” said Ms Lakangaran.
In case of an emergency, the locals are forced to travel to Marigat Sub-County Hospital, more than 50 kilometres away, with the help of police escort, owing to incessant banditry attacks, a poor road network and lack of an ambulance in the far flung area.
“Immunisation of children here is unheard of since the facility was shut four years ago. The nearest dispensary is in Kiserian, which is also more than 30 kilometres away. We have just resigned to our fate and pray to God to keep us healthy because in case of an outbreak of a disease, we will lose lives,” she lamented.
Living in the bush
In the neighbouring Tiaty East Sub-County, locals have raised concern that children and expectant women have been hard hit as they have been forced to live in the bushes as they flee from the disarmament exercise, exposing them to cold and other respiratory diseases.
A resident of Nasorot, Chepochesirwo Kirareng, regretted that social amenities — including schools and health centres in the area — have been closed and residents have been forced to seek the services of traditional herbalists, who are not reliable especially when there is an emergency.
“We fear the outbreak of diseases now that we have been forced to live out of our houses, including young children, amid the long rains. Mosquitoes are having a field day on expectant women and children at night. We have no alternative but to stay here,” said Ms Kirareng.
Harassment
A spot check by the Nation revealed that locals, especially in the remote areas, cannot be able to travel to other facilities like Marigat and Kabarnet for fear that they might be harassed and beaten by security officers.
Road blocks have also been mounted on major roads in the zoned areas and anyone plying the route must undergo a thorough scrutiny from police officers.
A health official from Tiaty has confirmed that health services such as immunisation, outpatient services and all essential services, have been completely shut in the region due to the ongoing operation.
“Locals, especially in Silale Ward, have been hard hit since all the health facilities are completely closed. We are calling on well-wishers and organisations such as the Red Cross to reach the affected locals through outreaches. This is a disaster waiting to happen if nothing urgent is done to remedy the situation as children would suffer from malnutrition and outbreak of diseases. Expectant women are also staring at hard times,” the official who declined to be named said.
Locals in the region complained of brutality being meted by security officers deployed to seize illegal guns and flush out armed criminals in the area.
Baringo County Health Medical Director Salome Chelimo confirmed that health services have been paralysed, with some of the facilities in the volatile areas being vandalised.
She also said that some non-local health workers have pulled out of the banditry-prone areas for fear of their lives, leaving a few locals who cannot effectively offer services on their own.
