Come clean on matters port, Abdulswamad tells President Ruto

Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir during the interview at Spice FM on Wednesday, August 11, 2023. Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir has called on President William Ruto's administration to be transparent on matters port. Speaking during an interview with Spice FM, Nassir said that despite denials by the Kenya Kwanza administration, they intend to continue with the port concession plan. Nassir said that recent events by the government show that they want to exclude the port city from any conversations about the move and its ramifications. He said that he is not opposed to concession but is opposed to the introduction of a third party (beneficiary of the concession) without clarity on what they are supposed to do. He argued that no concession agreement will be less than 40 years at a minimum and the inclusion of the county and the people of Mombasa needs to be considered through the availability of information about the move. "We need to know what is the stake of Mombasa in this whole thing," he said adding that the effects of the concession will also need to be known by Mombasa residents. He said that the county needs to be on the negotiating table on the issue adding that he was surprised to learn that no public participation had been done by the government over the move. According to Nassir, he has held meetings with stakeholders in the shipping industry who agreed to pay the County 10 US dollars for every container they import, but the Ministry of Transport CS Kipchumba Murkomen put brakes on the move through Attorney General Justin Muturi and Treasury CS Professor Njuguna Ndung'u, who wrote to him saying the move is impossible to implement. He said that while serving as Mvita MP he brought an amendment seeking to stop the handing out of Container Terminal 2 to the National Assembly and Senate and was passed. "If you go to some of the most advanced cities in the world the ports city will either have shares, will either be the owner of the port," he said. El Nino The governor said that the county was ready for El Nino rains after their fixed waterways in different parts. He blamed construction works that have been taking place in the county saying some developers had blocked the passageway which ends up affecting the residents when it rains. He also called on the Ministry of Transport and Kenya Ferry Services to bring order to the Likoni ferry passage from the Likoni side in order to avert what he said was a looming disaster due to the chaos in the area. With the pending extension of the Standard Gauge Railway to reach Mombasa town, Nassir called on for collaboration to ensure that there is harmony on how to deal with human traffic and their affairs. He said that he had raised the issues with relevant bodies as well as CS Kipchumba Mukromen but had not gotten a positive response. According to the governor, he has written letters seeking the involvement of Mombasa County in the projects to by the office of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, Attorney General Justin Muturi, Council of Governors, but nothing has been done yet. He said the responses from the aforementioned offices affirmed that the county ought to be involved but this is yet to happen. "Do you want to get into a situation where you seem to be the one always fighting why can't we work together," he posed.

Come clean on matters port, Abdulswamad tells President Ruto

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Come clean on matters port, Abdulswamad tells President Ruto

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