By Eugene Omilo
Mombasa County Governor aspirant Suleiman Shahbal has
called on the government to work towards settling displaced survivors of the
Tana River conflict and helping rebuild their
lives.
Shahbal said it is a pity that hundreds of members of the
Pokomo and Orma communities continue to languish in Lamu and Mombasa counties
after being displaced yet there hasn’t been elaborate plans to resettle
them.
The aspirant was speaking at Markaz Swalihin Islamy
mosque in Kisauni constituency today after distributing over 10 tonnes of
foodstuff to survivors of the Tana Delta violence who are camping within Mombasa
county after being displaced.
The exercise which saw hundreds of the survivors
receiving rice, maize meal, canned fish, cooking oil and other accessories was
coordinated by Islamic Awakening of Preachers and Imams
(IAPRAM).
IAPRAM chairman Sheikh Mramba Bakari Omar said the
education sector in Tana River has been affected and many pupils remain out of
school having fled their homes after the conflict.
On his part, Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (Supkem)
Coast chairman Sheikh Muhdhar Khitamy urged the Orma and Pokomo communities to
embrace peace and vote in focused leaders who are compitent enough to represent
them well at county and natiuonal levels.
Shahbal promised to lead efforts in resettling the Tana
Delta IDPs currently in Mombasa county in consultation with other
stakeholders.
“As the government pursues the perpetrators of the
violence, our advice is that more efforts be directed towards resettling those
displaced and finding lasting solutions to prevent similar occurrences in
future,” said Shahbal.
Also present at the event were Lamu senator aspirant and
Witu councilor Hassan Albeity and Kisauni constituency aspirants Amina Abdala,
Pius Chorongo and Nyonga Makemba.
 |
| Pokomo and Orma elders at Swalihina mosque in Kisauni.PHOTO/Eugene OMILO. |
 |
| Shahbal hands over relief food to a Tana River conflict victim.PHOTO/EugeneOMILO |
Ends…
No comments:
Post a Comment