Interdenominational prayers and cleansing were on Sunday, January 2, 2021, held at Chebarus Primary School in Turbo Sub County.
The school is the scene of an incident that saw two people shot dead and several others injured following a confrontation with the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) officers.
Land ownership row is at the center of the Christmas Day deadly confrontation.
Both KDF and the locals claim ownership of the over 5,000-acre piece of land at Chebarus Nine Farm.
The land borders KDF Recruits Training School (RTS) and the Kenya Ordinance Factory (KOF), which are military installations in Uasin Gishu.
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Several political leaders joined locals and religious leaders for the event.
Families of the two killed – Joel Kibet, 53, and Eliud Menjo, 43, were also in attendance.
In his address, Uasin Gishu Governor Jackson Mandago called for extensive negotiations between KDF and the leadership of the nine settlement schemes that were involved in a fatal incident.
Mandago asked residents to allow the committee appointed to follow on compensation for the victims.
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The county boss also said that he is working closely with the committee from the nine farms and KDF to ensure that the locals are given their rightful share of the 5,339-acre parcel that had long been agreed upon and documented by the National Land Commission (NLC).
“We urge the security department to stick to their roles of keeping peace rather than killing Wanainchi,” said Soy Member of Parliament Caleb Kositany who also attended the event.
On his part, Kenyan Ambassador to Pakistan Prof Julius Bitok challenged the government to focus on addressing issues related to land ownership to avoid future deaths.
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“Land issues are very emotive therefore government should quickly intervene to avoid any altercation in the future. It’s not in order that lives are lost in such a reckless manner by people who are supposed to protect Kenyans,” said Amb. Bitok, who is also the Uasin Gishu gubernatorial aspirant.
