Nairobi, KENYA: House Committee on Agriculture is set to summon various cabinet secretaries on the sugar saga currently rocking the country.
In a media briefing at parliamentary buildings led by National Assembly Agriculture committee chair Adan Hajji Ali, they said that following the depth of the matter on allegations of presence of toxic sugar that has been nabbed by the government in various towns across the country ,the committee from Monday next week will summon the Agriculture and fisheries cabinet secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri ,Interior cabinet secretary Fred Matiangi , Trade and industry cabinet secretary Aden Mohammed and Treasury cabinet secretary Henry Rotich .
Other stakeholders expected before the committee, are Ethics and Anti-corruption commission officials, Kenya Revenue Authority officials, Kenya Bureau of Standard representatives who will shed light on the matter.
“The committee will in the next few days be summoning several stakeholders and state agencies in order to get to the root of this matter, including The owner of Rai Mr. Jaswinder Rai,” Ali said.
He said that the watchdog committee will be pinpointing the sugar barons who might have imported contraband sugar into the country, whereby during the house debate on Tuesday it emerged that a sugar baron imported 184,000 metric tones by using other sugar companies to import sugar and stored it in godowns spread across the country.
“This importation of cheap and toxic sugar in the country smacks of a well-orchestrated move to kill the genuine sugar milling companies in the country such as Mumias, Nzoia and Muhoroni sugar companies where our local farmers depend for livelihoods.”The legislator said.
He indicated that the committee will not be arm-twisted in executing its mandate and it will not side with any political affiliations until the sugar saga is settled terming it a disturbing affair to the Kenyan people.
The chair argued that the government agencies must move with speed and arrest the culprits of the toxic sugar and desist from releasing of any contraband sugar in any store in the country.
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