Over the past five decades, families living in Egu Kalinga Village, Mackinnon Ward, Samburu Sub-County, have been stuck in a land dispute. Now, these villagers are telling President William Ruto that they will be evicted from their ancestral land if the issue is not solved promptly.
The controversy is about the 10,190-acre land that was once the Duruma Group Ranch bordered by Tsavo East National Park.
The villagers assert that the land was reallocated in an irregular manner without their knowledge, and as a result, it was renamed as the property of Dokata Ranch Company. This happened following what they claim was land grabbing by a now deceased local chief of the area.
Changoti Lugwe, the sole surviving original member of the ranch, recounts that after the transfer that was done in an irregular manner, the community was evicted forcibly while their petitions for redress have always found no response. It has taken a long time since their latest appeal made in 2021 has had any effect.
Meanwhile, the residents of the area have alleged that the sons of the late chief have been involved with some officials in Kwale in plans to extend the disputed ranch illegally so that community members who are the rightful owners are left without access.
Therefore, the locals have been denied land for grazing, settlement, and means of living. Agnes Nyae who is 61 years old stated that armed guards have been sent to stop them from grazing their livestock. She also said, “Our movement has been curtailed. We cannot graze our animals, and we have nowhere else to go.”
The community of the area has given their opinion on the issue and that is they need President Ruto to get involved immediately and revert the land back to them on the basis that it was settled with the purpose of advancing the socio-economic development of pastoralist families.
Seven villages — Egu, Dupharo, Nyacha, Dokata, Roka, Sirira, and Silaloni — have been merged to form the ranch, which was meant to be the basis of the Duruma community’s prosperity and sustainability.
At this point, the villagers are still in a state of uncertainty, depending on the favor of their long-standing calls for redress being acknowledged at the very top.
