Turkana Governor Jeremiah Lomorukai rallied his constituents to stage demonstrations against Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) over reported deaths of fishermen in Lake Turkana.
Speaking to the press on Sunday after the burial of some of the victims, area residents claimed that over 18 people had since been killed at the lake with numerous shooting incidences having been reported in the recent past.
A section of residents also alleged that their boats had been torched as a warning to keep them away from undertaking any activities at the lake.
The majority of those who attended the burial claimed that the deceased was struck by a live bullet while fishing in Lake Turkana.
The fishermen pointed an accusing finger at Kenya Wildlife Service officers assigned to man the lake.
The Governor questioned why locals struggling to make ends meet were being brutalized and subjected to painful deaths.
The governor who was accompanied by angered youths announced a raft of measures that he believed would arrest the concerning trend.
"They need to explain why this has happened. As if killing fish is wrong. As the governor of Turkana, I will marshall a serious delegation and demonstrate to ask KWS why people are being killed," he said while calling for protests against reported deaths.
The governor subsequently called for thorough investigations to establish why many deaths had been reported at Lake Turkana.
He lamented that the majority of the residents solely depend on fishing as their main source of livelihood.
He further urged residents to take caution while exercising their right to protest and present their petitions to the relevant authorities.
The right to protest is entrenched in Kenya's constitution under Article 37. It states that every person has the right, peacefully and unarmed, to assemble, to demonstrate, to picket, and to present petitions to public authorities.
