Raila sets record straight over 2009 Mau Forest evictions
Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Raila Odinga has distanced himself from the 2009 Mau evictions that affected over 20, 000 families in Rift Valley.
Speaking on Mediamax's Emoo FM on Wednesday morning, Raila said it was the Cabinet that decided the eviction of the Mau Forest residents.
"People took advantage to finish me politically using the Mau evictions. It was not my personal decision. Cabinet discussed it and it was taken to Parliament where MPs made a unilateral decision to preserve the water catchment area," he said.
He said his role was only to act on what had been agreed upon since he was the Prime Minister.
"I instructed the then Minister of Forest Noah Wekesa to carry out the evictions. I only acted because of my position. It was never personal," he added.
Mau Forest Complex is a water tower for 10 million Kenyans. But illegal settlement and deforestation have destroyed 24 percent, or 107,000 hectares (264,000 acres), of its trees over 20 years.
What happens to the Mau, which feeds Lake Victoria and the White Nile, has big implications for a region where 23 million people are afflicted by a fifth year of drought.
The forest settlers, many of whom were sold false title deeds, then rejected the government’s position that they had no right to the land and many were fearful about where they would live.
The controversy splited then Kenya’s already fragile coalition, formed in 2008 to end post-election violence that killed at least 1,300 people and drove another 300,000 from their homes.
Raila was at the forefront of efforts to reverse the Mau destruction, which UN scientists said could cost Kenya’s crucial tourism, tea and energy sectors alone at least $300 million.
