State creates new sub-county in Laikipia to tackle violence

The government has created a new administrative sub-county in Laikipia in a bid to tame the rising insecurity in the county.

In the new changes, Ol Moran division has been hived off from Laikipia West sub-county while the Ng'arua division has been hived off from Nyahururu sub-county to create new Kirima sub-county.

The headquarters of the newly created Kirima sub-county will be in Ol Moran township.

"In an effort to enhance coordination of the functions of the national government, the Interior Cabinet Secretary has established a new administrative unit as a service delivery and coordination unit," Dr Fred Matiang'i said in a gazette notice.

The new administrative unit brings to three, the total number of sub-counties in the vast Laikipia West constituency.

Laikipia County will now have six sub-counties.

The creation of a new administrative unit comes amid rising tension in the volatile Ol Moran area where at least 10 people have been killed and hundreds displaced in the last two weeks.

A new deputy county commissioner, a sub-county police commander and other administrators are expected to be deployed to the new sub-county.

Laikipia Governor Ndiritu Muriithi has been pushing for the creation of the administrative unit and the upgrading of Ol Moran Police Station into a division headquarters.

Leaders from the region have also been pushing for an overhaul of top government administrators in the county with CS Matiang'i expected to announce the changes later Friday.

The CS is expected to announce changes in security management of Laikipia , even as the governor and other leaders called for deployment of the military to quell the violence in the area.