- Image via Wikipedia
(My Original Blog Post: http://maasaiwarrior.se/2009/08/15/re-organizing-mukogodo/)
- Image via Wikipedia
In times like this, traders are known to hike the basic stuff prices so that they can fetch the highest profit possible. This kind of rip off is common in areas where a few traders monopolize and totally dominate commercial in-flow of the highly demanded food stuff. The locals normally have no alternative than to pay the hiking prices.
In areas like Mukogodo, the “nomadic” people unwillingly, find themselves playing by the biased retailer’s rules. They would sell their animals at a throw away price since there are no better market alternative. A few well organizing throat cutting merchants men and women weekly invade the area. They disorganized Mukogodians are forced to de-value their cattle while they expensively sell them commodities they bring with them from far areas. It is in those local markets you’d see real throat cutting capitalistic trade in the open market.
There is a tendency for the traders to earn profit at the expense of the ignorant pastoralists. They have the powers to lower animal prices by manipulation. Moreover,they inflate prices for the consumer commodities they bring with the. When a pastoralist sell a cow for let’s say, ksh 15.000, he’ll most likely spend the money to buy Unga from the same person he’d sold his cow. The merchant literally takes back the money making the pastoralist look like a big fool who exchanged his dear cow for Unga.Black Friday Weekend Special – 40% off Yola Silver w/ code THANKS40! Create a professional site for just $5/month! Ends 11/28
I assure you this is the lowest point a Maasai can sink!
Mukogodo people expect the authorities to protect them from these kind of commercial exploitation. Beef production and other related trades must be protected if a a fair market is to be created. It’s obvious that cattle keepers may choose to venture into other business for survival if the market continues to disfavor pastoralist.
I know many would argue that the Maasai cattle rearing lifestyle must be kept but you would only win the debate if you provide more land and plant more trees but that is almost impossible? SInce all our land is being forcefully converted into wildlife conservancies and we don’t seem to win that war in the very near future. What we need to do is to ensure our survival first and foremost so that we can fight those wars and claim justice to be done.
Naturally, It is not impossible if you think that Israel is a successful state after a few years of hard work and land reclamation by a State determined to shape its destiny.
Many of us may be ignoring the reality at hand when the nomadic people are concerned. The truth of the matter is that, keeping cattle in Mukogodo is no more a reliable livelihood. In fact, Mukogodo land is dead long time ago. It cannot support any kind of animal rearing.
People need to be helped by the system to adapt a new survival mechanism. If willing, the government is able to re-open Kenya meat industries and assist in organizing cattle marketing in those areas. Alternatively, camel keeping can be introduced as a better option instead of cows and goats. A governmental micro-loans scheme could finance this shift.
Another very good and rightful suggestion is for the government to buy off Oljogi ranch, Chololo, or any other massive unused lands like Kinyon, Mpala, you name it, and create farming schemes.
I would recommend that the land be communally irrigated under government supervised irrigation schemes. Some zero grazing can also be practiced in order to reduce number of cattle or the land will be over grazed like in the case of Mukogodo. Mukogodo people are bound to change lifestyle and catch up with the rest of the country. We just have to do a reality check and take the right decision to the right direction
I see our people perishing in the very near future if the Kenyan government does not step in and train the population in re-adjusting and reconsidering their lifestyle. The Laikipiak Maasai sub clans who occupy Mukogodo namely (Il-digiri, Il-ngwesi, Il-momonyot and Leuwaso) also, the neighboring Samburu and Yaaku, Somalia and Borana people cannot anymore live under the out dated system that have proven to be un productive. When you consider what has come out of it after all years of “clinging to old traditions,” then you’ll definitely understand that we need to re-think and re-educated our people. A cow or goat in an already barren Mukogodo is not only environmentally dangerous but also very unproductive.
Mukogodo has repeatedly suffered long spell of drought and famine. This human degeneration must be confronted by the Mukogodo people themselves if anybody will ever hear our cry. We must all stand up and face our government and demand attention.
Moreover, we must demand portion of the cake from the tourism industry since we belong to the Maasai community, a well know icon of tourism which is earning Kenya enormous amount of solid foreign currency.
Our image makes Kenya rich but it has ever since robbed us from our pride, dignity and identity! When you slaughter a cow, all members of the society have the right to a portion of meat. According to the Maasai, the neck meat belongs to the warriors, the back born to the girls, the head is for the elderly while the intestines and the liver (depending on what kind of animal) is given to the mothers. There can be injustice in meat allocation among the Maasai but at least every member is counted given their rightful portion of meat. Corruption in this kind of meat sharing can cost you dearly no wonder it’s very rare!
Why is the Kenyan tourist industry slaughtering our cow every day and refuse to share the meat that is rightfully entitled to us? Even when we’re the slaughter men? Is it because we are not asking or our portion or is it because we are not counted as members of the Kenyan family? I would really like to hear what President Kibaki and Prime Minister Odinga tells the Mukogodo people now that the next elections are due in two years.
Friday, August 14, 2009 2:51 AM PDT
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People’s Daily Thu, 13 Aug 2009 19:25 PM PDT
Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki on Thursday urged traders to be humane and stop taking advantage of the shortages caused by the drought in various parts of the country to hike prices of food commodities. President Kibaki regretted that some traders had increased the prices of consumer commodities to the extent that the common person was finding it difficult to access food. Kibaki who was officially …
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