Tana River Governor Dhadho Godhana has made a passionate call to residents of Madogo and Bangale in Tana River North, to surrender illicit guns to the government saying no place will develop economically, with rampant insecurity and intercommunity fighting.
Governor Dhadho said he was ready to move into every village in the area to boost the gun-mopping exercise declared by the national government in January 2026
The county boss said he was willing to resolve the long standing and often deadly confrontation between livestock keepers and farming communities over dwindling water and pasture resources.
Clashes between two warring communities in December last year led to deadly violence and the loss of 14 lives.
According to the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) the current protracted drought in the county was entering an emergency situation.
In a report NDMA says most water pans, dams and boreholes have dried up, and pastoralist communities have to walk for long distances in search of water and pasture.
Dhadho made the remarks at Madogo shopping centre during a public baraza where he was accompanied by the county security team led by area County Commissioner (CC), Joseph Mwangi.
“Give up the guns. They won’t bring any form of development. I speak this with experience. Embrace change and engage in business instead,” the governor told the crowd.
Dhadho said he had a blue-print and economic programme for Madogo town and urged the residents to seize the amnesty period offered by the national government for anybody who surrenders illegal firearms.
“We are changing this town to a double-business corridor. We have a surface water master drainage plan and walkways like in Hola town. We are building a huge market and clean water system here. We want to align our towns with the River Tana that meanders throughout the county.
He revealed that investors were starting to put up 10,000 housing units in various towns in the county from this month, and one is set to construct a modern hospital, in a long term investment.
At the same time the County Commissioner, Joseph Mwangi, said the government will implement stringent measures to curb the circulation of illegal arms in the region.
He assured residents of adequate security protection and urged them to surrender illegally held firearms.
Mwangi urged the residents to remain calm, vigilant and cooperate with the security agencies involved in mopping up the illicit firearms.
The administrator urged the communities to stop harbouring bandits and other criminals, noting that public cooperation remains critical in ending recurrent insecurity incidents.
“We urge the residents to report any forms of criminality for the authorities to act decisively,” he said, adding that criminals often live and operate within the communities.
He said since January 2026 residents in Bangale Sub County have surrendered 11 illegally held guns to the multi-agency security team.
The CC noted that the security situation was gradually improving attributing the progress to sustained security operations and growing public support
By Hussein Abdullahi
