Contrary to the positive sentiments in Peter Leftie’s July 2nd article [Daily Nation] and Hon Raila Odinga’s romanticisation of the Lamu Port during his recent visit to Lamu this past weekend; Lamu locals are no way near being supportive of the proposed port. This sentiment transcends from all corners of Lamu but unfortunately the voices are being silenced under the radar of the media. My eyes were opened to this after witnessing youth holding banners during the PMs public baraza being terrorized by local provincial administrators. The youth held banners stating “No Land Reforms, No port”, “Hatupingi Bandari, twataka tu hadhari” (we do not oppose the port, we just want caution), and “Hati zetu ni haki yetu” (Our title deeds are our right). The banners were torn up by hooligans sent by the Chief and DC to silence the opposition against the PM’s romantic port story and the youth threatened with imprisonment, thus spearing faeces on their constitutional right to peaceably demonstrate and picket.
Being a strategic politician, the PM visited Lamu accompanied with a goody bag of maize and grain aka “kitu kidogo”, and the Minister of Lands filling the locals with another sack of promises on land reforms, but not as a condition to the port plans. Raila expected that with the goody bag, he would be received with open arms and the port get a stamp of approval. However, he was rudely awakened with the lack of applause both in a leader’s meeting and the public baraza after he belittled the demands for land reforms as a condition to building the port by equating the request as “short-sighted” and not looking at the bigger picture. More short-sighted than your free goody bag of grains? I beg to differ.
Mr. PM, it appears that you did not yet read your history books before coming to Lamu. The people of Lamu have for too long been refused the right to own land. So the only people who were short-sighted were the Lamuains (new word) who failed to picket and shout out against Kenyatta when he converted our land into Government land and instead welcomed him with open arms, and the Mombasaians who up to today do not own a majority of the land around teh Kilindini port so continue living pay cheque to pay cheque. “Fool me once, shame on you” they say. But we will not be fooled TWICE!
So while your port plans are fantastic for national and local development, what the people of Lamu were asking when you had wax in your ears was is: when this development comes, how will they benefit if they don’t even own the land where those so called resort villages, airports, and railway stations, be constructed? By having 8-6 low-pay jobs in the port shifting sacks of cement? Sorry to burst your bubble Mr. PM, we have had enough of eating the leftovers from tycoons who own a vast of the land on the coast. You invited the Sultan of Zanzibar for dinner, why kick him out now when the food is served? As the youth with the banners put it well, “Bandari bila hati, si maendeleo” (The port without titles is not equal to development.”
This is why the people of Lamu applauded when the Lamu County Council Chairman Abdu Kassim and Minister of Fisheries called for the government to sort out pending land issues prior to undertaking the port development plans, and stopped close of booing you Mr. PM. And this is why the people of Lamu will continue to refuse the port, and ask all their fellow citizens on the coastal trip to refuse your 50cent proposal until our rights as Kenyans are recognized i.e. that “every person has the right, either individually or in association with others, to acquire and own property.”
Article submitted by an anonymous source.