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Senator slams Govt inaction, urges swift response to save Northern Kenya flood victims

Mandera Senator Ali Roba.

By Ali Roba | Monday, November 27, 2023

The situation in Northern Kenya is at an alarming stage. Due to impassable roads, all lorries are stuck at various points along the Garissa- Mandera road and Moyale- Takaba road.

The situation in Northern Kenya is at an alarming stage. Due to impassable roads, all lorries are stuck at various points along the Garissa- Mandera road and Moyale- Takaba road. Prices of fast dwindling food has more than quadrupled with essential food supplies fast depleting. Even if the counties were to buy and distribute food it is not possible due to in accessible roads.

These roads are under the National Government and mainly the responsibility of KeRRA , KURA and KeNHA. It is very sad that no Minister in the current Government has made any attempt at all except Cabinet Secretary [for Defence] Duale who helped in getting essential drugs to the region by use of military aircraft. We are immensely grateful to the Cabinet Secretary and the military for their kind gesture.

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If the current crises was to happen in the North Rift or Central Kenya, I am 100 per cent sure that the government would have acted with some air of emergency around the crises but because “all of us are equal and others are more equal than others” the region has been left only to the mercy of the Almighty Allah.

People are already staring at serious starvation due lack of food supplies. Due to misinformation, the Government shelved the emergency response plan for El Niño and they went to sleep and yet to wake up from the slumber to the reality of devastating floods. As bureaucratic planning process is announced by the President, the situation is claiming lives. The Government must act with some air of emergency around the crises.

Counties are the first line of response and have been acting since the crises began 45 days ago and are overwhelmed. The main access roads that have been cut off are all under the jurisdiction of the National Government but they seem not to care at all. A few ignorant persons are criticizing county government because they do not understand the fact that some of the functions squarely belong to the national Government like the roads under, KURA, KeNHA and KeRRA.

Even if the Government was to offer billions in cash to counties to mitigate the situation, it will not help due to impassible roads. What is urgently required is flying food to the affected counties and doing airdrops in some areas that are also not accessible by air. The Government must act with some air of emergency around these crises or else risk being viewed as a failed government. Effective response to disaster of such magnitude is the responsibility of the national government.

Ali Roba is the former Governor of Mandera and current Mandera Senator.