Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo addressing journalists during a past interview. [Photo/the-star.co.ke]
Lamu residents who were displaced following terror attacks in the region will not be compensated, the government has said. According to The Star, the government is working on stabilizing the security situation in the region to ensure the residents return home. Speaking on Tuesday, Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo said the government is not in a position to compensate the victims as requested. The new development comes after the government extended a curfew in the region until the security situation goes back to normal. More than 2,500 residents fled their homes following the attacks with Maleli, Jima, Pandanguo, Poromoko and Nyongoro villages being among the most affected. The IDPs who comprise of mostly farmers had asked the government to compensate them after their crops were destroyed when they fled their homes because of incessant attacks from the suspected militia men."The government will not compensate anyone for anything. It wasn’t the government’s fault that people ended up in IDP camps in the first place.The government is doing everything possible to restore normalcy and that's what we should all focus on,” said Kitiyo, as quoted by the local daily. The county commissioner assured the residents that the government is committed to heightening security in the area. He further asked residents to support the extension of the curfew, which was imposed by Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i.