NAIROBI (Halbeeg)- Kenya government has reopened Mandera stone quarries which were closed two months ago.
The quarries shut down after intelligence reports indicated imminent Al-Shabab attacks against non-local quarry workers.
Speaking the media, Mandera County governor Ali Roba ordered that quarrying sites in the county be reopened.
“I hereby direct that as far as the county government is concerned, all people involved in quarry work to resume their activities immediately and it is the responsibility of the national government team to provide security to the public,” he said.
Mr. Roba criticised the order issued by Mandera Security Committee chaired by the county commissioner terming it illegal and lacks basis.
“We have had terror incidents in the past and quarries were never closed, why take such a decision now when a high percentage of the population is relying on the quarries?” he asked.
The governor said the closure of the quarries had a negative impact on the county’s economy.
“Before the ban, a lorry of stones was Sh20,000 and now it is Sh33,000 which is more than 60 percent increase which is ailing the local economy,” he said.
The quarry industry provides more than 5,000 job opportunities in the county
The government of Kenya announced the closure of quarries on May 4, 2018, a week after four miners were killed by suspected Al-Shabaab fighters at Shimbir-Fatuma quarry in Mandera South.
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