Sugar millers have been urged to pay farmers their dues so that they can be able to pay fees for their children and provide basic need. Addressing mourners in Sitikho ward in Webuye West constituency, former board chairman of Nzoia Sugar Company who is also the former Webuye large legislature Hon Joash Wamang’oli said many farmers are going through hard moments especially after most of them being hit economically by corona virus.
Wamang’oli has appealed to the management of Nzoia sugar and that of West Kenya too to pay farmers their money for them to return their children back to school in order to continue with their education, adding that some are candidates and are about to start their examinations from next month. He said while at Nzoia before the board was dissolved by agriculture cabinet secretary, they had put out a good plan of paying farmers and it was going on well and was surprised with what has gone wrong.
“While I was there we had put up a good plan to pay farmers and the plan was going on well and some were even enjoying so after I and the board left something must have gone wrong somewhere. I request the management to do something so that farmers can stop lamenting otherwise they may end up not giving us their sugarcane and that will have a negative impact to our sugar mill “, said Mr Wamang’oli.
He further indicated that the issues surrounding their dismissal are almost over and he together with the board of management may bounce back .He promised to deliver to sugarcane farmers the moment he steps in the office adding that there is a lot to public relations exercise going on in the miller which do not help farmers and workers at all.
” Issues are almost over and am coming back to put things in order and my focus will be on farmers and workers who are going through hard moments at this time and we must give them hope that they can have confidence and give us their sugarcane which is the main raw material that will keep the miller working, ” he said. However, he took a swipe with the ministry for allowing the cartels to import sugar from other countries while there is a lot of sugar in the country which he says is affecting the market for Kenyan sugar and insisted that that could be the reason why farmers are not being paid because Kenyan sugar is not being sold due to cheap imported sugar by the cartels.
He implored on the agriculture cabinet secretary Peter Munya to intervene and stop the cartels and even get them arrested as they are part of the people who are bringing down the Kenyan economy and should be dealt with.