Insecurity dominates Bungoma Sikika Sasa forum

BUNGOMA COUNTY: A wave of insecurity that has gripped Bungoma County, including the string of murders targeting children featured during a talk show hosted by Kenya's premier television, KTN.

Speaking at Sikika Sasa- a UNDP Kenya initiative hosted by Jeff Koinange on KTN, Bungoma county commander, Maalim Mohamed said there have been a number of murder cases that have been looked into and the culprits brought to book.

''After an overhaul of the security team in the county, we managed to nab 11 most wanted criminals behind the recent killings. Six have been sentenced to death, 4 are in remand and one has jumped bail,'' said Maalim.

County leaders led by Governor Ken Lusaka and Women Representative Dr Reginalda Wanyonyi also spoke at the forum at which residents sought redress to challenges including poor infrastructure, unemployment and revival of Webuye paper mill.

The police boss added that defilement cases and underage pregnancies have shaken the county hence efforts to ensure that this vice is stopped, are in progress.

"It is worrying when even class eight candidates are impregnated," said Mohamed.

Recently, an education official disclosed that fifty three (53) pregnant girls are Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidates in Bungoma, a matter that has shocked most of the residents.

Dr Wanyonyi vowed to work with the residents, to curb such inhumane acts.

A bitter lot of the residents said that jigger infestation is on the rise in the region and most of the school children are victims of the menace.

''We have the young and the old who are vulnerable to the jigger prevalence and are really suffering; we need immediate action to that problem,'' said Namlei Wasike, a resident.

Dr Reginalda assured the residents that the county has partnered with Ahadi Kenya to start an anti-jigger program, which will be rolled out in five schools at Kabuchai Constituency.

"We should not only address the symptoms but also reasons why the jigger menace is prevailing in Bungoma. At the moment we are to deal with the problem as it is, but moving forward, we shall deal with the high poverty index in the county," said Governor Ken Lusaka.

Residents have complained of poor infrastructure; the roads in most areas are dilapidated - a problem that affects business in the county.

"We incur losses after our fish goes stale due to lack of storage facilities in the area and our roads are impassable, making it a challenge to supply fresh produce," said a fish farmer.

The residents further added that Webuye Pan Paper factory lies dormant, which would have been a source of employment. Though the county leadership promises to rehabilitate the plant, most of the residents claim that it has been years since anything was done.

Unemployment continues to bite in Bungoma. The locals want the county government to lay measures that will facilitate employment opportunities, in Bungoma.

"Youth unemployment is a national problem but we have allocated 90 million to enable the youth start small enterprises to empower them financially,'' said Governor Ken Lusaka.

Gov. Ken Lusaka finally assured the residents that most of their grievances will be addressed and action will be taken on areas of concern.