Luanda MP Dick Maungu has alleged that Luanda town has a railway station by changing the earlier agreed course of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) from Kisumu to Malaba.
Maungu argues that it’s unfair to move the station in the initial plan to Siaya County, despite the town having hosted a station on the colonial metre-gauge railway for more than 80 years.
On Saturday, President William Ruto and his Ugandan counterpart, Yoweri Museveni, launched the extension of the SGR from Kisumu to Malaba.
The project has sparked criticisms from the larger Gusii region, where the leaders have also accused the government of scrapping plans to have a station in Nyamira.
The two presidents presided over the launch of Phase 2C of the SGR at Kibos in Kisumu County on Saturday, marking the start of construction of the line linking Kisumu to Malaba on the Kenya–Uganda border at an estimated cost of approximately Sh122.9 billion.
This final leg completes the connection to Uganda, with total project costs for the Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba route being around KSh650 billion.
The railway extension is expected to strengthen regional trade and connectivity in East Africa and eventually link Kenya’s rail network with Uganda’s.
But Mr Maungu says the current plan to place the new station in Yala, rather than Luanda, would undermine a key commercial hub in Western Kenya.
Speaking at Mumboha Comprehensive School during the issuance of Ksh65 million in bursary funds to 13,688 students drawn from secondary schools, colleges, and universities, Mr. Maungu said the decision to move the station away from Luanda would disadvantage the region economically.
“For many years, we have had the colonial meter gauge railway all the way from Mombasa to Kisumu, Luanda, Butere, and Malaba,” he said.
“The new SGR railway is passing through Luanda, but we have a problem. For a long time, we have had a railway station in Luanda at Mwibona market that has been serving us, but with the new SGR, our station has been taken away from Luanda to Yala, which is a smaller town compared to Luanda.”
Mr. Maungu said he was not opposed to Yala having a station but argued that Luanda’s economic significance justified keeping one there.
“This is an economic zone and the second-largest open-air market in the country after Karatina. Look at the turnover of money that goes through Luanda,” Maungu said.
He added: “It is a very strategic corridor for the SGR, and having the Luanda Railway Station maintained will bring good fortunes for the people of Luanda economically.”
According to the MP, the station had initially been planned for Ochwore village, a stone’s throw away from the existing metre gauge railway station at Mwibona, before it was moved to Yala shopping centre at the last minute.
He also pointed out that Luanda has historically served communities beyond Vihiga County.
“From Kibos in Kisumu, the next station has been here in Luanda, serving Vihiga County, Siaya, and even Kakamega,” he said.
The lawmaker added that ongoing developments in the town, including a modern market expected to host more than 1,000 traders and an industrial aggregation park, were planned with the expectation of a nearby railway station.
“By denying us the station, it means our traders cannot market their goods and merchandise to the surrounding markets,” he said.
“This railway is opening up Kenya to Uganda, but what we are doing is denying our people opportunities.”
At the same time, Mr. Maungu raised concerns over the growing financial crisis facing public universities in Kenya, warning that the sector is weighed down by nearly KSh 100 billion in debt.
"As a Member of the Education Committee in the National Assembly, I have sat in sessions where the Higher Education Principal Secretary, Dr Beatrice Inyangala, confirmed that public universities are burdened with over Ksh 100 billion in pending bills,” he said.
According to the MP, more than 450,000 students are unable to access HELB funding, while universities are struggling to pay lecturers. Learning, he added, has also been disrupted by strikes linked to Ksh4 bcollective bargaining agreement (CBA) arrears, while several key development projects in universities remain stalled.
Mr. Maungu noted that some of the country’s largest public universities account for the bulk of the debt.
Egerton University is owed Ksh25.5 billion, University of N17obi Ksh 17 billion, Kenyatta University Ksh12.8 billion, and Moi UKsh10.4ity sh10.4 billion.
“As a country, we must ensure that when our children rise through our education system, the system itself is strong enough to carry their dreams. Let us not just fund education, let us fix it.”
