Marsabit residents who trekked to campaign for tarmac road have called for recognition from both the County and National gov’t.
The group under their umbrella ‘The Great Trekkers Road Campaign 2004’ trekked for 21 days to champion for 510 kilometres of tarmac road two decades ago.
On 8th of November, 2004 the journey to Isiolo started in Moyale town with songs and dance as political leaders and locals flagged off over 70 residents drawn from different communities and professionals – with eyes focused on construction of tarmac road.
Their effort bore fruit when the Kenyan government commissioned the roads to Bitumen Standard with the support of the African Development Bank (ADB) in realization of Vision 2030.
The highway which was part of the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia (LAPSSET) corridor project was unveiled by the late Mwai Kibaki during his second term in office at a cost of Ksh42 billion.
Despite The Great Trekkers putting their sweat, blood and tears in the quest for the realization of the dream, they have nothing to show for it hence their call for recognition, 19 years down the line.
Addressing the media in Saku, through Omar Kutara, the group registered their dissatisfaction after their series of appeals for recognition and awards fell on deaf ears.
“We took up the challenge after a serious deliberation for about two months, regardless of our political or tribal affiliation, through our action we finally caught the attention of the government and the road was delivered even though we experienced a myriad of challenges along the way. It is only fair for the authorities to recognize our effort as well,” stated Kutara.
Kutara said the team members have nothing substantial to sustain themselves during such hard economic times arguing that time is ripe for their unsolicited recognition.
“We shouldn’t have been here crying to the gov’t for assistance. They ought to have known by themselves but here we are calling our shot, “he added.
The Great Trekkers have also called on the leadership of Isiolo and Marsabit leaders to join their effort and work together to find a solution to their concerns.
On his part, Pastor William Waqo urged the government to formulate a policy for recognition of various individuals who champion projects which are beneficial to the masses.
“Yes we can agree back then they might have no policy in place but now we need to figure out how to go about such a great initiative. It is only fair and humanly acceptable for the gov’t to now salute us; just look around how athletes are being called to state house, awarded with cash, houses and other gifts – come on, if possible, do for the Great Trekkers too,” stated William.
According to Halkano Galgallo, with the construction of the tarmac road, Marsabit has become ‘part and parcel’ of Kenya with a stretch of a tarmac road commonly referred to as the “black snake”.
