Senate Asked to Investigate How Stolen Livestock Enters Formal Markets

Nominated Senator Hezena Lemaletian has urged the Senate to investigate how stolen livestock is finding its way into recognised markets, transport networks and slaughterhouses.

Speaking on Tuesday, October 13, the senator asked the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries to establish how animals stolen from farmers and pastoralists are introduced into legitimate commercial supply chains, despite existing requirements for ownership verification and livestock movement permits.

"Livestock theft should not be allowed to become a commercial enterprise. We need to establish how stolen animals are finding their way into formal markets and slaughter facilities and whether the existing traceability systems are capable of identifying their true origin and ownership," she said.

Lemaletian's request comes amid concerns that gaps in livestock traceability and market regulation could allow individuals involved in livestock rustling to sell stolen animals through formal business channels without being detected.

She wants the committee to examine whether livestock traceability systems and market surveillance measures are effective in preventing stolen animals from reaching regulated slaughter facilities. 

Lemaletian also wants to know whether animals delivered to these facilities are routinely checked against records and reports of stolen livestock.

She has further called for scrutiny of compliance with livestock movement permits and other documentation requirements. 

The committee is expected to establish how many permits and livestock suppliers have undergone verification or audits, as well as the action taken against individuals found using fraudulent documents.

Samburu, Isiolo, Laikipia, Turkana, Baringo and West Pokot counties have been identified as priority areas for the proposed investigation. 

Lemaletian wants a comprehensive audit of the livestock theft-to-market chain in the six counties to determine the extent of the problem and identify the people and networks facilitating the trade.

"We must follow the chain from where an animal is stolen, how it is transported, who facilitates its entry into the market and where it is eventually sold or slaughtered. Every actor who enables that chain must be held accountable," she added.

The proposed inquiry is also expected to examine the progress of investigations into livestock theft and rustling, including the number of livestock suppliers, transporters, traders and market operators who have been investigated, arrested or charged in connection with the offences.

Elsewhere, this comes months after Lemaletian claimed that she was racially profiled while seeking services at the German Embassy in Nairobi.

In a statement on Facebook, she took issue with the Embassy after she was kept waiting for long hours outside their gate while white people were allowed into the premises.

Lemaletian questions how ordinary Kenyans would be treated, given that she was a VIP and was still subjected to alleged racism.

"It is very embarrassing that I am still sitting at the gate for hours. Only your fellow white people were allowed through your gates. If you treat a Senator like this, I wonder how much worse it is for our Kenyan citizens. I witnessed racism first hand," she stated

Lemaletian claimed that the consulate had not replied to her emails seeking an update on the processing of her visa application.

Consequently, she demanded that the Embassy return her passport, stating that she was tired of the humiliation that had gone on for weeks.  

"Can I get my passport back since emails are completely a waste of time? My passport is a property of the Republic of Kenya and not of Germany. It is indeed one country I have never wished to visit, and God forbid that I will ever visit it in this lifetime," she added.