By John Kamau
The compensation row pitting the government and residents living around Kariminu II dam in Gatundu North has deepened as victims point an accusing finger at the state for neglecting them.
The locals from Gituamba, Kiriko, Kanyoni, Iruri, Gathanji and Buchana claim that they are staring at a tragedy after the water levels rose to their homesteads submerging some structures like pit latrines.
The most affected residents are those living around the dam’s buffer zone. The government has been seeking to acquire around 600-acre land surrounding the dam to protect the dam’s ecosystem and facilitate control of possible pollution of the water resource through plantation of trees.
The aggrieved residents led by Siphirra Njoroge decried that the dam water has already submerged their farms and can no longer grow crops.
They decried that some homes are no longer habitable after they developed huge cracks that residents blame on the close proximity to the dam while most lavatories in the villages have caved in as a result of being filled with water from the dam.
“We are living like squatters in our homes. Currently we are facing starvation because we have left with no land to till. This dam has been the cause of all our miseries and we want the government to compensate and relocate us before tragedy strikes,” Njoroge asserted.
The locals claimed that the multibillion mega dam that was commissioned by former President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2022 has been the cause of their misery since water impoundment started in May, 2022.
They noted that several people have already lost lives in the dam with the latest incident occurring a few months ago where a school-going boy perished in the deep waters.
“Danger is lurking and we wonder whether the government is waiting for a tragedy to occur for them to hear our cries and relocate us. Our homes have already developed huge cracks because of this water. We are actually staring at landslides,” Muiruri said.
Speaking to journalists at Gathanji village, the locals took issue with the government for taking them in circles and occasionally hoodwinking them that they would be paid to facilitate their relocation.
Resident Beth Wangari raised concerns that the families are currently staring at hunger since the water gobbled up their farms and destroyed all crops.
“This dam has continued to impoverish us. We now have no land to cultivate and putting food on the table for our families has become an uphill task. The little food that we had including bananas, arrowroots has been submerged in the water,” Wangari said.
The residents asserted that the dam which they thought would address some of their problems like lack of water in their homes has been nothing but a cause of their suffering saying the only thing they get from the dam is mosquitoes and severe colds.
Wangari noted that they are concerned about the safety of their children saying that they fear they might perish in the dam. They also fear that the situation in their villages will worsen when the long rains start pounding the region in October.
“I’ve already lost a son in this dam and every time I wake up and see the waters it reminds me of him. We fear that our kids will be wiped out by the dam. The government should prioritize relocating us,” she said.
Resident Ng’ang’a Karori asserted that they have raised their concerns with all relevant authorities and their local leaders led by MP Njoroge Kururia but no interventions have been made to salvage them.
“We cannot let our children out of our sight whenever they are at home because tragedy can strike anytime. We have been calling out for help but it seems our cries have been falling on deaf ears,” he said.
They also accused the government of dragging its feet in compensating and relocating them noting that valuation of their properties has been done countless times but the compensation process has never been concluded.
They said that despite the countless visits by state officials in the area, submission of their title deeds and gazettement of their parcels of land, they are yet to receive any information on when they will get their due compensation.
Mt Kenya Times