Deputy President William Ruto is behind the push to stop the ongoing eviction of settlers from the Mau water complex, Narok Senator Ledama Ole Kina has alleged.
Speaking on Wednesday, the lawmaker observed that the spirited fight put up by his allies to ensure that the settlers remain in the forest shows that he is for the same.
In an interview on KTN's Pointblank, the Senator told the DP off on the Mau issue, insisting that preservation of the forest and water tower must be realized, and telling him to keep off.
He said that the language being spoken by the likes of Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen implicates the DP, telling him to “stop interfering”.
He rubbished claims that the settlers have nowhere else to go, claiming that they are in the forest as mere workers but have second homes in the neighbouring counties.
"If these people did not have a second home, then you wouldn’t see the likes of Murkomen and Cheruiyot coming to say we are defending our people. We have a million schools in Kenya... if these people are moved from here, they can be readmitted in other schools for free; that’s not a big deal,” he added.
According to Kina, the settlers are being used as human shield by former powerful persons who allocated themselves land during their tenure in previous regimes.
Consequently, he added, the powerful men and women are using the settlers as human shied, to enable them remain in the forest and carry on with their illegal operations including logging.