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Igambang'ombe residents fear sub-county could be scrapped

 

Residents of the disputed Igambang’ombe sub-county have accused the government of dragging its feet in salvaging the administrative unit that was annulled by a court on the grounds that there was no public participation during its creation.

On January 12, the High Court in Chuka quashed a gazette notice that had announced the creation of the new sub-county and gave the government 90 days to make amends or the administrative unit would be scrapped.

Residents now claim that with only two weeks remaining before the end of the 90-day grace period, little has been done to ensure that the sub-county is not lost.

Addressing the media at the county headquarters in Kathwana, the residents, led by Mr Joseph Njeru and Albano Kiania, said that though national government officials, led by County Commissioner Beverly Opwora, conducted public participation on February 3, no further progress had been.

Mr Joseph Njeru, a resident of the disputed Igambang'ombe sub-county addressing media outside the county commissioner's offices in Kathwana on March 26, 2022. The residents expressed fears of losing the administrative unit.

Alex Njeru I Nation Media Group

“We are likely to lose our sub-county because government officers in our county don’t seem to be serious about this matter,” Mr Njeru said.

During the public participation, Mr Kiania said, a majority of residents of the 45 sub-locations in the region supported the creation of the administrative unit that was promised by President Uhuru Kenyatta on June 22, 2017 when he toured the county.

But Ms Opwora said the government was on top of the matter and assured anxious residents that they will not lose the sub-county as the government had also invested in it by building offices and deploying officers.

The administrator, however, noted that a group of 39 people had written to the Interior Cabinet secretary’s office claiming that they were denied a chance to participate in the exercise.

“There are some people who have challenged the public participation that we conducted but that will not stop the process of re-gazetting the sub-county,” Ms Opwora said.

She said a report on the public participation event would be presented in the High Court as ordered and any other disagreement will be settled later.

Ms Opwora urged residents to shun politicians who want to use the matter for political mileage.

A group of elders went to court to challenge the creation of the sub-county, claiming that residents were not asked whether they would like to be in Chuka sub-county or in Igambang’ombe.      BY DAILY NATION  

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