EXCLUSIVE: BANISA’S UNTOLD STORY... Residents of Banisa District in Mandera County are concerned about continued “closure” of the main road connecting Banisa and Rhamu via Guba and Ollo villages. The road was rendered impassable almost two years ago when clan clashes between the Degodia and Garre first flared up. But with insecurity rising over the months since the clashes begun, residents and businesses men abandoned the road and sought an alternative longer road that takes them almost double the time they would have actually taken. Sometimes late last year, a lorry heading to Rhamu from Banisa and using the said road was attacked by heavily armed militia, killing three people. The dead included the driver, an elderly woman and a male passenger. The incident forced many residents to change their route for fear of being attacked. “We have stopped using the road due to fear of attacks by militias. The security on this road is very bad and for us, travelling using this road means putting our lives at great risk” Says Mohamed Eymoy, who runs a retail shop in the town. As an alternative, the resident have for the last two years been using the Banisa-Takaba-Wargadud-Rhamu road, which is much longer and rougher. “A journey that would have taken me less than six hours, is now taking me close to twelve hours” laments Bishar Maalim, another resident. Residents have lost hope on the local administration whom they accuse of neglecting their duty to protect lives and property. They say that area security chiefs rarely visit the area to assess the extent of inconvenience the continued closure of the roads is causing. Efforts by the local Mandera Times team to seek audience with area administration officers, was not successful. They are now calling on the County Government to urgently intervene saying local businesses are finding the longer roads increasingly uneconomical. “we have been forced to part with more than double the expense of running our businesses; consequently, we are forced to push this extra ordinary cost to the customers, thereby affecting almost every single household in Banisa” says an agitated businessman Mohamed Abdow. Saying that the closure was precipitated by the Degodia and Garre conflicts, residents are now optimistic normalcy on the road will return. “Happily we have a peace accord in place between the two brother clans, we hope the roads will open up and we start travelling on the road without any fear of attack” adds Mohamed Abdow. A would have been fact finding mission by the local Mandera Times Team was prematurely aborted after elders and local residents strongly advised against using the road, describing it “extremely dangerous”. Story Compilation: By Mohamed Khalif, also many thanks to Hassan Ibrahim for providing the story lead.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Aug 2013 13:16:41 +0000
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