Governor Mwangi wa Iria has stopped a coffee co-operative society from selling a Sh300 million building in Thika town.
Mr Iria said Murang’a Farmers Cooperative Union’s decision to dispose of the building to pay off farmers’ debts was questionable since the Government had waived Sh1.5 billion in coffee debts.
“The loans that have been a burden to farmers were waived. How come the property is being sold? I expected the farmers would instead be identifying another building to buy,” said Iria yesterday.
The society’s delegates met two months ago during a special general meeting, chaired by Francis Ngone, and approved the sale of the building after deliberating on the best way to raise money to pay off their creditors.
But the governor said the county government had blocked the deal because the society was among 27 co-operative societies that had been granted Sh4.8 billion through the national debt waiver programme to offset what they owed.
The initiative was launched in 2011 by President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was then the Finance minister.
Iria said the farmers had no valid reason to sell the multi-million-shilling property located in a prime location in the town.
He added that he had requested for details on how the money given by the Government was used so he could understand if and why the farmers were still in debt.
Indebted farmers have uprooted their coffee trees, frustrated by the meagre returns from the cash crop, and turned to other more rewarding ventures like horticulture.
