Patrick Alubbe, WaterPartners Kenya Country Director, and the rest of our Kenya staff are currently safe during this time of political turmoil in Kenya, and are eager to be able to return full-force to bringing safe drinking water to the communities they serve.
As you may be aware, the disputed election results in Kenya have stirred some violent reactions within the country. Unfortunately, a substantial amount of this violence is ethnically driven, often targeting the Kikuyu, the largest single ethnic group and the ethnic group of the incumbent president, Mwai Kibaki.
WaterPartners’ headquarters team in Kansas City has been working closely with our Kenya Country Director, Patrick Alubbe, to keep a close eye on the well-being of our Kenya team and partners. Alubbe has spoken with WaterPartners’ other Kenya staff members and they, like him, are safe.
While the level of overt violence has decreased, WaterPartners’ Kenya team members are staying close to their families during this period of unease, and will return to the office by January 14 at the earliest.
Alubbe’s family has been has been one of the most affected of WaterPartners’ staff. While the home he has established for his family near the town of Eldoret does not lie in the traditional lands of either the Kikuyu or the Luo, the group most upset by the recent election outcomes, he has been forced to relocate. Over the years, a number of Kikuyu families have settled in that area, too, and on January 1, angry people began burning the homes of his Kikuyu neighbors. These neighbors were able to flee in time, and he believes they found safety at a police station rather than in the church that was the site of the most notorious ethnic violence.
Children collecting water in Kibera Slum on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya.
After his children witnessed this trauma, and doubting that the violence was likely to remain focused only on certain households, Alubbe felt compelled to leave for the safety of his family. He and his family have been staying in a more secure location in the household of one of his brothers.
Alubbe has been in touch with our local partner organization, SANA. SANA’s work bringing safe water to communities has been temporarily halted due to the current situation, but they are anxious to return to helping meet the water needs of those they serve. They hope to return to their offices by January 14.
The WaterPartners family extends its support and concern to its Kenya office, SANA, and to all those in Kenya at this difficult time. Please join us in keeping Kenya and a peaceful outcome to this situation in your thoughts.
