Deputy President William Ruto has directed the department of immigration to speed up the processing of identification cards belonging to pastoral communities.
The Deputy President said it is the right of every Kenyan citizen to be issued with an identification card once they attain the required age.
“The law dictates that any Kenyan citizen who is eighteen years old must be given an identification card,” said Ruto.
The Deputy President spoke in Garsen where he inspected the Garsen Technical Training Institute and also launched an agricultural mechanization programme in Hewani, Tana River County.
He was accompanied by Tana River County Governor Hussein Dado, his deputy Jire Siyat MPs Abdi Bule (Senator) Ibrahim Sane (Garsen) Ali Wario (Bura) and Halima Duri (Tana River County).
The Deputy President asked Tana River leaders to safeguard the gains achieved in reconciling communities in the region, saying peace in the region was important for the people to realize development.
“It is our responsibility as leaders to ensure we build bridges of friendship, brotherhood and unity between all the tribes and religions so that we can live as a people of one united nation,” he added.
Ruto appealed to the pastoral community to shun traditional practices that have been a stumbling block to education in the region and take their children to school.
“We have decided to educate our children and focus on development activities and shun tribal conflicts,” he went on.