Elders drawn from various communities resident in Uasin Gishu have taken issue with a report by the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) tagging the county as a hot spot in August 9 polls.
The more than 300 elders who met in Eldoret over the weekend said the NCIC report listing Uasin Gishu as one of the counties that are likely to experience violence during the general elections this year was erroneous, baseless, and in bad taste.
In the report, Kisumu, Nakuru, Nairobi, and Mombasa counties were also identified as possible hotspots.
The elders led by Edwin Chepsiror representing the Kalenjin Myot council of elders John Kamau representing the Agikuyu Community and David Nyambane representing the Kisii community said unlike, in the past, they were certain there will be no violence in the region during this year’s election.
“We as the council of elders in Uasin Gishu, are astonished by the NCIC claiming Uasin Gishu is not peaceful, and we challenge them to come and point those areas to us,” said Chepsiror.
He added that the elder’s council has been partnering with the county and national government leadership on peace building and peaceful coexistence among all communities in the region.
“Uasin Gishu County has experienced relative peace since 2013 and such reports by NCIC are damaging to the reputation of our county and we demand they retract its frequent labeling of our region as a hotspot county,” Nyambane said.
The elders asked NCIC chairman Samuel Kobia to visit Uasin Gishu and discuss with stakeholders on peace issues instead of releasing reports based on hearsay and past events.
“It seems like NCIC is still basing its reports on the unfortunate incidence that occurred in 2007/2008, which is unfair since the county has moved on and its residents have enjoyed peace,” said Nyambane.
Uasin Gishu deputy governor Daniel Chemno expressed a similar concern saying Uasin Gishu was a peaceful county, “In 2013 and 2017we had peaceful elections, and in 2022 there will be more peace,” said the DG.
The deputy governor explained he was shocked when NCIC categorized Uasin Gishu County as a hotspot location even after quoting the area was peaceful.
The elder said they will continue to meet with political candidates cleared by the IEBC to urge them to hold peaceful campaigns devoid of dangerous and careless utterances.
They also urged the media to report responsibly with enough information so as not to misguide citizens.
At the same time Uasin Gishu County Commissioner, Stephen Kihara has called on the county residents to maintain peace during this electioneering period.
The county commissioner said the county security committee will ensure enhance regular patrols by security officers to ensure everyone is safe.
“During this election period, we’ll be having patrols throughout this town to make sure peace prevails,” he assured.
Kihara stated that they have liaised with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, IEBC to ensure there is a clear programme for the aspiring politicians to make sure the candidates do not hold campaign rallies in similar venues at the same time to avoid a clash of their supporters.
