Politician on police radar over Naivasha skirmishes
A bus that was torched by youths from the densely populated Karagita estate in Naivasha who were protesting the killing of a fisherman on September 22, 2021.
A Naivasha politician is among the people on police radar following three-day skirmishes that rocked Karagita estate in the outskirts of Naivasha town last week.
The protests were initially triggered by the shooting of a fisherman reportedly by security officers manning Lake Naivasha before it later escalated into a looting spree.
The protesters engaged police in running battles, retreating into the vast estate, before resurfacing to block the busy Moi South Lake road.
“We have an intelligence report that some of the local leaders incited youth for political expediency and we are keenly following up the matter,” deputy county commissioner Kisilu Mutua said.
He warned politicians against inciting the youths over the shooting incident, saying police will not hesitate to arrest them.
“Leaders should not make political capital out of the unfortunate incident, which is under active investigation,” added the administrator.
Tension has been high in the area following the shooting incident, with youths calling for the removal of the recently posted members of the Kenya Coast Guards, accusing them of high-handedness.
A multi-agency security team was posted to guard the natural resource following rampant poaching cases that were threatening to cripple the lucrative industry.
Regulation of fishing activities
Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara, while meeting with a group of fishermen on Sunday, called for a long-lasting solution to curb the clash between the enforcement team and the illegal fishermen.
“The management of the fishing activities by Nakuru county government and the Kenya Coast Guard must be in consultation with all the stakeholders,” she said.
Ms Kihara termed Lake Naivasha a source of livelihood for hundreds of families, arguing that the regulation of fishing activities in the lake should not be an avenue to lockout genuine and hardworking fishermen.
She condemned the shooting incident, terming it as unfortunate, while demanding for justice.
But Mr Mutua maintained that only licensed fishermen will be allowed to operate in the lake, saying they were in the process of licensing more traders.
“We are working on modalities on how to license more fishermen but this has to be done in a structured manner and within the parameters of the law,” stated the administrator.
He said the recent demonstrations were infiltrated by crooks, masquerading as fishermen.
