Honeymoon over for beer sellers and guzzlers

Business

By Standard Team

In the next few days, any parent found in a bar with his children will be liable to pay a Sh150,000 fine. Bar operators who sell beer to under 18s must be ready to pay up to Sh2 million - regardless of the capital outlay of their investment.

These are the new regulations pub operators were being reminded of yesterday as the season of renewing commercial licences came round. The tight rules include the fact that if your business is within 300 metres of a school then you may have to look for other merchandise to sell because you would not get licensed. If reveller is already drunk and he or she orders more bottles or tots and is served, the seller will be liable to a Sh100,000 fine while the buyer risks parting with Sh5,000.

But most interestingly, bars regardless of class and location, even the five-star hotels where a bottle of beer retails for Sh400, will be free to stock and sell chang’aa and busaa alongside their first-line drinks.

The only condition is they must have made the specifications for preparation, inspection and packaging outlined in the Act — which makes it an industrial, not cottage business, subject to the regulations set by Kenya Bureau of Standards and Public Health Authorities.

These and other shocks that await beer drinkers and traders are anchored onto the coming into force of the Alcoholic Drinks Control Act 2010 within the next three weeks. The Act is set to ‘revolutionise’ the drinking industry and ruffle Kenya’s social life.

President Kibaki signed the Act into law on August 10.

Yesterday, the Liquor Licensing Board Court suspended its sittings in Kisumu just to explain to beer traders what the new law says. It is also understood that the courts delayed their sittings countrywide to wait for the new Act to come into force. Kisumu East District Commissioner Mabeya Mogaka told traders they had suspended renewal of licences to allow them factor in the new laws.

Under the new regulations, all supermarkets and stores that sell alcohol will be expected to seal off the selling points and those below the age of 18 years will not be allowed in.

When this law comes into effect, any establishment, including five-star hotels would have the right to sell chang’aa and busaa. These traditional drinks will, however, have to be brewed and packaged according to standards set out by the KEBs.

Traders will only be allowed to sell chang’aa and busaa in premises but they must all be labelled. The labelling will allow the producer to be traced in case problems such as loss of sight — reported in the country in the past — come up.

Drinking joints would not be allowed within a radius of 300 metres from a learning institution and a big billboard will be placed saying, "Alcohol is dangerous to your health" in every bar.

The new law prohibits advertisement of alcoholic drinks and may affect sponsorships of popular TV shows that glamourise alcoholic drinks.

The new laws may portend the end of multi-million shilling promotions run by the giant brewers where people win beer and money since it "encourages consumption of alcohol." Vehicles transporting alcoholic drinks are not also allowed to sport advertisements that glorify alcohol drinking.

The Act stipulates that no alcohol will be sold in sachets less than 250 milligrams and must be packed in bottles, not plastics, and anybody found violating the regulation will be liable for prosecution.

Clearance needed

According to the Act that would be enforced by National Environmental Management Agency, Kenya Bureau of Standards, the Government Chemist, and National Campaign Against Drug Abuse (Nacada), no trader would be allowed to sell the commodity without clearance from these bodies.

Once the trader attains clearance from the four bodies, they will move to the Liquor Licensing Court, which will verify the documents before issuing the licence. The board will consist of the local DC as the chairman while a person appointed by Nacada will be the secretary.

Others in the board would be the District Medical Officer of Health, Divisional Police Commander, a civic representative, a community representative, KEBs and an officer from the Government Chemist.

Forms to be filled when seeking a license would now be issued by Nacada and not DCs offices any more.

At the Coast, DC said they were studying the new Alcoholic Drinks Act to understand their new role in licensing. "I have read the new Act but I am waiting for a circular from the Office of the President to give me details on how to effectively operationalise the Act," said Kwale DC Mr Mofat Kangi.

His Kinango counterpart Appolo Okello also said he was studying the Act. "We are in the process of studying the new Act so as to understand exactly how we should implement it," Okello said.

Msambweni DC Munzin Abdullatif said the Liquor Licensing Board has not been constituted in her district. "Msambweni District is still being served by the Kwale District liquor licensing board," she said. In Nakuru, bar owners along Kanu Street said they were worried about the effect the new law will have on their business.

Nacada’s role

"Some of us are contemplating quitting as we know we are going to be affected," said Mr James Mwangi who operates Headquarter Pub. In Njoro, DC Jim Njoka said the new law would streamline the industry with Nacada expected to play a pivotal role in licensing and implementation.

Another administrator who requested anonymity, however, said the Government is yet to sensitise them on the new law. In the North Rift, Wareng DC Alex Nkoiyo said: "After implementation, sanity would be experienced and people would only flock joints that are legally licensed," said an optimistic ole Nkoiyo.

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