Machakos Deputy County Commissioner (DCC) David Rotich has expressed concerns over the rising number of suicides in the county.
Rotich, who spoke on behalf of County Commissioner Josephine Ouko during the Jamhuri Day celebrations held at Scott University, noted that the majority of the victims were men and termed the trend as worrying.
“The number of suicides reported not only in Machakos Sub-County but across all other sub-counties is very high, with the majority of men taking their lives,” he said.
The DCC attributed the suicides to domestic woes and called on residents to seek counselling to reverse the trend.
Rotich assured residents of heightened security ahead of the festive season and cautioned them against overindulging in activities that may pose security risks to themselves and others.
“We have set up a multi-agency team that will ensure security during the festive season; however, anyone found engaging in illegal activities will be arrested,” said the administrator.
On El Nino rains, the DCC asked residents to exercise caution and take care of their children during this holiday season to prevent drowning.
He said so far, five cases of drowning, mostly children, have been reported across the county since the El Nino rains started in October.
Rotich asked residents to, however, take advantage of the rains and plant trees to combat climate change and help the government achieve the ambitious goal of planting 15 billion trees by 2032.
“In Machakos, we planted 527,663 trees during the national tree planting exercise that was spearheaded by the County Commissioner and the Governor,” said the DCC.
The administrator also decried the destruction of government projects, especially dams in the county, saying officers from the Critical Infrastructure Protection Unit will be deployed to areas where vandalism has been reported to curb the vice.
“We are appealing to residents to also report such cases of vandalism to the relevant authorities,” he said.
Rotich also cautioned residents against encroaching on road reserves, saying such encroachment was derailing development in the county.
“Majority of the road reserves, especially access roads, have been encroached; what is even more worrying is that when the roads are being constructed, the encroachers rush to court to prevent any development,” noted the DCC.
By Roselyne Kavoo
