CS Murkomen orders fast-track IDs for foreign spouses

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The government will fast-track the issuance of identity cards (IDs) to foreign women married to Kenyan men in Taita Taveta County.

Internal Security Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said that all eligible foreign women and youths will be issued with the IDs and registered as voters ahead of the 2027 General Election.

“The issuance of IDs is free of charge, and nobody should be charged. The process of documenting dozens of Tanzanian women married to Kenyan men in the region should start immediately to ensure that they are not only recognised as Kenyans but also exercise their fundamental and democratic rights to vote for leaders of their choice in the next polls, besides participating in nation building,” Murkomen directed.

Addressing a political rally to drum up support for President William Ruto’s re-election in Mwatate Sub-County over the weekend, the CS revealed that the foreign women have not yet been recognised as Kenyan citizens, and the process to register them should commence without further delay.

Murkomen becomes the latest senior government official to visit the region to drum up support for President Ruto’s two-term slogan in the region that has, over the years, been voting for the opposition.

In a charm offensive tour of the region early this month, Deputy President Professor Kithure Kindiki inspected ongoing development projects and campaigned for the re-election of the head of state, saying the government has done a lot to transform the lives of the local community.

“There are many cross-border marriages that have been taking place in the county that borders Tanzania, and we are working on programmes to make sure that foreign women are documented for registration. The foreign women will soon be recognised and issued with identity cards,” the CS confirmed.

Earlier figures released by NGAO officials show that there were more than 2000 Tanzanian women who have been married to Kenyan men in the county, while many more others are being married but have not been registered as Kenyans due to a lack of national identity cards.

In the recent past, foreign women protested to the county government that they had been denied identity cards due to a lack of a certificate of registration.

The protesting women confronted senior county government officials with numerous questions to explain why it had become difficult for them to be issued identity cards, yet they were legally married in Kenya.

On the other hand, the women's husbands also complained of frustrations from the government to have their wives registered as Kenyan citizens.

“We have grandchildren with my Tanzanian wife, who is still not registered. We have constantly been trying to register her in vain,” protested Joseph Mwandoto from Mwatate Sub-County.

The protest comes at a time when cross-border marriages in the county continue to rise due to the proximity to the Kenya-Tanzania border.

NGAO officials in Taveta Sub-County revealed that cross-border marriages are on the increase at the border.

In an earlier interview, Kitobo location chief Yunis Jureji noted that cross-border marriages are on the increase at the border subcounty.

He disclosed that his location alone has a total of more than 500 Tanzanian women married to Kenyan men.

“My area of jurisdiction is home to many women of Tanzanian origin married in Kenya. Some of the women were married at a very tender age. More women and men are crossing borders to find their better halves,” Mr Jureji told The Standard.

The administrator confirmed that the region that borders Tanzania has, of late, reported a high influx of women being married to the county owing to the proximity to the border.

Former Deputy Governor Majala Mlagui asked the government to ensure that foreign marriages in the region are supported and recognised.

Some of the women disclosed that they were married in Kenya 40 years ago and their children and grandchildren are Kenyan citizens by birth.

"We cannot fully participate in building the economy because we lack the relevant documents. We cannot even access simple services such as M-Pesa, loans, or even register in women's Saccos because we do not have the relevant documentation.

We have also been unable to participate in the electoral process due to a lack of IDs,” one of the Tanzanian women married to a Kenyan noted.

Meanwhile, the Pare community living in Taveta Sub-County has petitioned the government to register them as citizens of Kenya.

Historically, the minority community living in Taveta Sub-County is believed to have originated from Tanzania. The community members have been living along the Kenya–Tanzania border, and there are estimated to be about 15,000 people in Kenya.

And their historic location lies on one of the northern routes of the historic East African long-distance trade, connecting the hinterland with the coast of the Indian Ocean.

The community’s chairperson, Rama Lukindo, had earlier presented the petition to Professor Kindiki, demanding that they want to be recognised as one of the ethnic tribes in the cosmopolitan county.

“We have been living in the Kenya area since the 18th century. And we have suffered for years for lack of identity cards, birth certificates and title deeds, among other important documents.

Our children have been denied critical services like bursaries, among others,” the elder protested.

“We have the right to be recognised as citizens of Kenya, and we are petitioning the government to end the many years of discrimination and suffering,” Lukindo protested at a meeting at Eldoro village recently.