MPs warn investors against sabotaging 'Big Four' Uhuru agenda

National Assembly's Agriculture Committee chair Adan Ali (in white), Busia County Women Representative Florence Mutua and other officials when they toured Busia Sugar Industry yesterday. [Ignatius Odanga, Standard]

National Assembly’s agriculture committee has accused some investors of frustrating their colleagues through courts. 

Committee Chairman Adan Ali and Busia County MP Florence Mutua on Saturday regretted that the Busia Sugar Industry was yet to start crushing almost two years after its completion due to court cases facing it.

Mr Ali (Mandera South) warned that manufacturing as one of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big Four Agenda risks being affected by investors who do not like competition.  

The sugar company was supposed to roar to life early last year, however, it suffered a major setback when its license was revoked following a successful petition by West Kenya Sugar Company that had challenged the licensing process.  

Mr Adan said the committee will take up the matter with view to ensuring that the more than Sh4 billion project becomes operational to create job opportunities to residents and elevate their living standards.

According to the Mandera South Ali legislator, in the interest of supporting President Kenyatta's manufacturing agenda, West Kenya should withdraw the case and reach truce. 

“It is unfair to the people of Busia and even to the President who is pushing for the Big Four Agenda where manufacturing falls that one of the investors has decided to sue another and the cases are not ending,” said Ali.

The locals are bound to benefit immensely once the factory starts crashing. “It appears that the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing in this country and that should not be accepted,” said the committee’s chair.

He challenged the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture Mwangi Kiunjuri to tour the factory for the sake of the residents. According to Adan, residents were being denied employment opportunities due to unending court battle between the two millers. 

“We want to reduce poverty and improve livelihood of our people but relentless court cases is not the way go, competition is health and investors should accept competition,” said Adan.

Ms Mutua said the issue between the two wrangling factories were political and must be resolved politically not through courts. She remained adamant that the factory must become operational before end of this year.

“I will not tire in fighting for what will benefit our people. Investors are welcome to the county but must put interests of the locals ahead of anything else,” she said.

The company sits on 100 acres an, according to managers, more than Sh4 billion has been spent on setting it up. 

The miller has already procured more than 600 acres sugarcane plantation and contracted at least 10,000 acres owned by farmers. It has a capacity to crush 3,500 tonnes of sugarcane daily.