By James Innocent
Internally displaced communities of Mukaya Payam in Lainya County in Central Equatoria State are calling for urgent humanitarian assistance to rescue the situation of the IDPs where hundreds of households live without food, medicines, clothes and house belongings.
The displacement was caused by armed cattle herders who invaded agricultural areas in Lainya and Yei Counties of Central Equatoria State; causing killings, removing of raw cassava for feeding animals. Communities living in the invaded areas are currently chased from their own homes and are in dire need of humanitarian assistance.
An IDP from Mukaya of Lainya County who requested anonymity said the cattle herders looted the belongings of the citizens. He said the herders raided their animals, took their utensils, clothes, blankets and destroyed farms. The internally displaced regrated that no attention has been accorded to the displaced population and others integrated with their relatives in Yei. He appealed to the government and humanitarian organizations to intervene with food and non-food items since people of Mukaya have not settled since the crises and up to now they are displaced with nothing. They are currently living in the areas of Atende, and Kanjoro.
“The cattle herders entered Mukaya and started to destroy people’s crops, looting people’s properties and when they questioned them that’s why they are doing so, they replied to us by cocking their guns especially the young ones holding arms and many left their houses and the displaced are currently residing in Yei River County without any assistance and I urge the national government and humanitarian organizations to intervene immediately to help the suffering community of Mukaya,” he said.
Meanwhile, Justin Ladu Head Chief of Mukaya Payam of Lainya County expressed disappointment that the cattle herders grazing their animals in farming lands to destroy farmlands. He called on the government of Lainya County and humanitarian organizations to rescue the suffering citizens.
“The displaced people have no food to eat as they were chased with nothing in hand living in abandoned houses of people who left for Uganda as refugees, the cattle keepers looted all the readymade sorghum and they also burnt the bush where they used to hide their food and the cattle destroyed all cassavas in the garden, currently no NGO has really appeared to support the displaced persons,” Ladu stated.