Former Lagdera Member of Parliament Farah Maalim has joined Somali leaders calling for the banning of miraa.
Maalim, the former Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, asked Ward Representatives from the larger North Eastern region and the Coast to legislate on laws which will classify the crop as a drug.
In a tweet on Tuesday, the ex-legislator asked Members of County Assemblies (MCAs) to borrow a leaf from Europe where miraa's consumption, growing and trade has been outlawed.
"I call upon the County Assemblies of Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, Isiolo, Marsabit, Lamu, Tana River and Mombasa to pass resolutions classifying Miraa as a drug and ban it's consumption, growing or trade. Europe did that and saved hundreds of thousands of hitherto dole dependant Somalis," Maalim posted.
Similar sentiments were recently echoed by former Mandera Senator Billow Kerrow who urged the Somali community to discard the crop he branded as 'evil'.
He said miraa was destroying lives of many youths and called on the government to discourage its farming by financing growers to invest in alternative crops.
"Miraa is a drug. Period. No amount of political patronage in Kenya will change that fact. The sooner the Somali (consumer) community discards this evil crop destroying their youth, the better for this nation too. Government should only fund farmers to diversify to other crops," Kerrow said.