Interior Cabinet Secretary, Fred Matiang’i, has reportedly been sued by a Kalenjin sub-tribe seeking recognition.
The group is said to have sued Attorney General Kihara Kariuki as well.
The Standard reports that the Lembus community, which is linked to the Tugens, want to be recognised as an official tribe in Kenya during the upcoming census.
Through their lawyer Dancun Okubasu, the Lembus community argued that their culture and ancestry are distinct from the Kalenjin.
They further stated that they were forcefully aggregated hence denying them crucial rights as a different community.
“Failure to recognize the Lembus as an official tribe in Kenya violates Article 45 of the Constitution which mandates the State to recognize and protect the family as a fundamental rights unit of the society and the necessary basis of the social order,” Okubasu stated.
“As a result of non-recognition as an official tribe in Kenya, the Lembus are forced to indicate that they are members of Tugen or Maasai communities when registering their national identity cards and national census,” he added
The Lembus predominantly live in Baringo County and are estimated to be around 300,000, having about 60,000 voters.
The community is perceived to be closely related to the Tugen, but this assertion has been rejected by the Lembus people themselves, and their council of elders.
Members of the Lembus community insist that Tugen is just a name coined in the 1960s to unite the small communities living in Baringo.
