Locals assured over controversial power plant

By Joseph Masha

The Government has assured residents of Ngerenya location in Kilifi that their grievances will be considered before the launch of the controversial coal fired electricity generation plant.

Kilifi DC Benjamin Wachira addressed over 300 residents from Ngerenya who had walked about 10 kilometres to reach his office and air their complaints.

Sensitised

He admitted that the people had not been sensitised before its kicking off.

"The rejection of this project by residents of Ngererenya location is because you were not informed about it from its initial stages and it’s now important to give you some civic education about it," said Mr Wachira.

The administrator who was accompanied by the Kilifi OCPD Clemet Wangai, however, had a rough time addressing the protestors who insisted that they did not want to be informed about the project because they had no interest in it.

A spokesman of the people Benjamin Dadu demanded to know from the Government how it earmarked their 330 acres of land at Zowerani for the power generation project before consulting them.

"The Government seems to have a hidden agenda about this power generation project because some officers from the Ministry of Lands and those who have been contracted went direct to the field and got directed to the site by our local chiefs and did their survey work secretly," he said.

Acquisition

Mr Dadu further expressed his shock at hearing that the Ministry of Lands had issued notice on the land acquisition in the Kenya Gazette yet the people on the ground were not aware of what was going on.

Wachira assured the residents that he would meet with them at the site where senior officers from the Ministries of Lands and Energy would be present.

"I have fixed April 24 to have a public meeting with residents of Ngerenya at the site where senior officers from the Ministries of Lands and Energy will be present to answer your concerns," he said.

The DC differed with the residents that the project had kicked off, saying it was still at its feasibility study stage. "Officers from the Ministries of Lands, Energy and officials from KenGen are just doing their feasibility study of the project to see how suitable it is for the area," he said.