Gatundu North residents now skipping meals as hunger bites

Residents of Gatundu North in Kiambu are now skipping meals as hunger continues to ravage the region in the wake of prolonged drought.

Having lost all their prospective harvests to the scorching sun that continues to hit all the villages, the residents say their only recourse is relief food as they have no alternative source of livelihood.

A tour of various villages especially at the banks of major rivers painted a drought-stricken area, with residents saying they cleared their maize crops for feeding by their livestock after it failed to rain.

For the constituency that is evergreen to experience such levels of hunger tells that the scorching sun has hit the country hard, causing a devastating drought.

Speaking when the area MP Elijah Njoroge Kururia and local administration released relief food to the severely affected elderly persons, the locals insisted that while they have been praying for rains, prompt interventions are required to help them suppress hunger pangs.

Led by Theresia Wambui, the locals who received kilos of rice and beans stated that should the current hunger crisis persist, children might bear the brunt of malnutrition among other challenges.

“It’s not tales anymore. We are hungry, some of us have been skipping meals and even getting one in a day takes the hand of God. Everything we planted withered before maturity and for that, we have been forced to clear our plantations for use by our livestock,” Wambui stated.

To facilitate survival, the locals also urged the government to consider lowering the prices for basic commodities such as maize flour to make it affordable to the downtrodden.

While sharing out the relief food, MP Kururia insisted that nothing better manifests the grim reality of the drought in the area than the long queues of elderly seeking to get their next available meal.

The lawmaker who insisted the government cannot manage to support every family with food urged Kenyans, especially those living in urban areas, to consider regularly checking on their parents to help them fight hunger.

“Those in urban centres, please send something to your parents in the villages to help them survive,” Kururia urged.

The legislator underscored that the government has laid down measures to provide permanent solutions to food insecurity in the country especially through construction of dams.

He urged Kenyans and especially the youth to embrace venturing into agriculture to support the government’s course.

“Our youth need to start planning on how to venture into lucrative agriculture to not only earn but also help bridge the country’s food security gap. With the laid down measures by the government, we hope to have enough water to facilitate irrigation of crops,” the MP added.