Daadab MP wants Kenya Somalia border point opened

Dadaab MP Mohamed Dahiye has urged the government to re-open the customs and immigration border point in Liboi so as to monitor movements of people and goods that enter and come from Somalia.

Speaking to the press after touring the stalled project that includes buildings, both offices and residential, the MP said that the government was losing millions of shillings as a result of the continual closure of the border point.

He added that the government used a whopping Ksh300 million ten years ago to set up the facility, which is less than a kilometre from Dhoble in Somalia.

Dahiye said that the initial plan was to have a fully equipped border control unit with immigration officers, custom, revenue team and security personnel.

Continual closure of the border was only in the official context, but in the real sense, it remained open through the many unofficial routes. This, he said, had led to the government losing millions of shillings.

Dahiye continued to urge the government to engage the Government of Somalia and have the border officially opened, noting that currently, the status in the war-torn country was changing and that the government’s presence is now being felt.

“Our people largely depend on doing business as their source of income. Livelihoods, trade and movement of goods and people will be facilitated and in turn, change the livelihoods of our people,” said Dahiye.

He appealed to President Uhuru Kenyatta to intervene and have the project completed and subsequently put it into use, which would help create job opportunities and greatly improve cross-border business.

Residents of Liboi who spoke to Citizen Digital said that the town was in near collapse since there was no business going on.

Written by Ronald Kibet