Rift Valley Regional Commissioner Mwongo Chimwanga has called on the judiciary to take all due and deliberate steps to resolve succession disputes related to land matters speedily to reduce family feuds.
Chimwanga said unsettled succession matters contributed largely to family conflicts, an observation witnessed in the spate of murders experienced in Kericho County in the last ten months.
“On specific issues that bring about the incidents observed in Kericho we have been informed that matters to do with succession specifically on land matters is one of the highest contributor in this regard. There are cases pending in court and they have been in court for quite some time and people have to make use of pieces of land and when one party makes use of the same contested parcel of land then some others don’t feel good about it. So we are seeing an increase in the number of domestic family disputes over succession matters,” he said.
The RC advised chiefs and their assistants to ensure communities in their areas of jurisdiction do not engage in out of court settlements locally known as ‘kipka’ but join hands in processing criminal-related offenses through proper legal channels.
“There are things that happen within our communities and the expectation is that community should be assisting police to prosecute matters. There should not be any gap existing between the community and police,” said Chimwanga.
The RC was speaking to the press after chairing a meeting with Kericho security enforcement agencies drawn from the six-sub-counties on Thursday at the area commissioner’s grounds where they discussed ways of curbing the rising cases of insecurity in the county.
Kericho County has witnessed a spate of murders from May 2018 up to April 1 2019, where a couple and their five year old son were brutally killed in Melit village near Kericho town, the recent incident has left residents in shock. No arrests have been made.
By Sarah Njagi
