The government’s plan to lease four public sugar milling companies for 30 years continues to face opposition, with senators demanding to know the rationale behind the move.
The legislators want to know why President William Ruto’s administration opted for leasing instead of strengthening public ownership of the struggling firms through the appointment of capable management.
The handover of the State-owned sugar millers to private investors over the weekend was marked by chaos amid widespread resistance from political leaders, workers and local communities.
Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah sought to know whether adequate public participation and stakeholder consultation were undertaken prior to the decision, and questioned whether leasing of the firms was in the best social-economic interest of the local communities.
“What is the impact of leasing out the sugar companies on farmers, employees and local economies, and what are the safeguards in place to protect public assets and ensure continued service delivery and economic empowerment in sugar-growing regions?” asked Mr Omtatah.
Chemelil Sugar Company is to be leased to Kibos Sugar Company while Muhoroni Sugar Company will be run by West Kenya Sugar. Nzoia Sugar Company is to be leased to Jaswant Rai and Sony Sugar Company to Busia Sugar Industry.
The leasing, part of a broader government effort to revitalise the struggling sugar sector, has, however, faced backlash for lack of stakeholder engagement.
Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o, for instance, said the Chemelil and Muhoroni lessees have no experience to manage the companies.
“We firmly oppose this opaque lease plan, which ignores the social fabric, existing infrastructure and public interests in sugar belt sub-counties,” said Prof Nyong’o. “The plan threatens to dismantle community livelihoods and invites monopolistic exploitation.”
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna said the process is being undertaken in an opaque manner, questioning the rush to lease the sugar mills despite ongoing litigation. He said that stakeholders in the sector have to be carried along to understand what is being done.
Mr Sifuna observed that in Bungoma, the farmers were clear that for Nzoia Sugar, the government would invest in the upgrading of the machinery to improve efficiency rather than leasing out the sugar mill or selling it.
“If you are leasing out the sugar mills, and the person is not interested in reviving the mills, but is only after the land owned by that particular sugar plant, there is going to be a problem,” said Mr Sifuna. “Nzoia Sugar has the biggest nucleus and the people of Bungoma will not allow that land to be taken because they consider it their land.”
“The process was done opaquely. Even if the government has good intentions, can they involve the people and leaders of that region, instead of just waking up and saying they want to lease Nzoia Sugar Company?” he said.
He added: “I am among the people who believe that privatisation is not the solution to the problems we have in the sugar industry. Mumias Sugar was doing well before privatisation. The problems started increasing upon privatisation, where the management did not listen to anyone.”
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei added that senators want accountability, public participation and dispensation of court cases that are already in place, before the leasing.
“I request the government not to be in a hurry because there will be a lot of legal hurdles that might affect this process,” he said.
His Kakamega counterpart Boni Khalwale argued that a matter affecting the livelihoods of eight million Kenyans directly cannot be conducted through sham public participation involving only the Bungoma governor and the Speaker of the National Assembly. He said the decision to lease Nzoia Sugar should be rethought and that the people must participate.
“Consulting those two leaders does not amount to public participation over Nzoia Sugar. I speak for 1.8 million people. These two leaders have accepted the factory to be leased to a guy called Rai, who took over Webuye Pan Paper Company. We refuse again and again,” said Dr Khalwale.
