Put an end to tribal clashes

The tribal clashes menace has once again reared its ugly head in Narok County, leaving a trail of death, injury and destruction in its wake.

The violence erupted on Friday in several areas of Narok South, giving vent to tensions that had simmered for days between the Maasai and Kipsigis communities.

Following this bloody turn of events, the government has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew and taken a raft of other measures in a bid to stem the violence.

These include deployment of security personnel from the Rapid Deployment Unit and the General Service Unit to reinforce the teams on the ground. This has somewhat contained the situation, with the areas affected now witnessing an uneasy calm.

It is worth noting that the latest wave of clashes came barely two days after the government lifted a curfew that had been in place since September, when violence hit the area, leaving at least four people dead, scores injured and more than 50 houses torched.

County Commissioner George Natembeya announced the lifting of the curfew during Jamhuri Day celebrations at Olposimoru and appealed to the communities in the cosmopolitan county to coexist peacefully.

Regrettably, his message of goodwill went unheeded and the protagonists picked up arms soon after.

This only points to an underlying problem that was not dealt with in September and, just like a poorly treated wound, continued to fester underneath the dressing.

The measures, including the curfew, only sought to address the symptoms but not the disease.

It is the more reason why the administrators, local politicians, county leaders and elders should now get down to work and identify the root cause of the differences.

Only then will they find a lasting solution to recurrent clashes.