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{
    "id": 1016454,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1016454/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 58,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Wetangula",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 210,
        "legal_name": "Moses Masika Wetangula",
        "slug": "moses-wetangula"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, this is a Statement under Standing Order No.48(1). I seek a Statement from the Standing Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries regarding plans to lease out state owned sugar companies. In the Statement, the Committee should- (1) Disclose the State owned sugar companies the Government plans to lease out. (2) Explain the criteria used to identify the State owned sugar companies to be leased out. (3) Explain if any public participation was undertaken, including but not limited to consultations with farmers, factory workers, cane cutters, relevant local leadership, including MCAs, Members of the National Assembly and Senators of the relevant catchment areas. (4) Explain in detail the role played by the Privatisation Commission, the statutory body mandated to deal with issues of privatisation of public institutions, and table their recommendations, if any, in this regard. (5) Give a detailed account and table the Report of the Presidential Task Force on the Sugar Industry in Kenya explaining whether leasing of factories was one of their recommendations. (6) Explain why the Government has taken the decision to lease the factories against the long publicised intended Government policy of engaging strategic investors and partners with shareholding percentage insulated for farmers, workers, and other local stakeholders. (7) Confirm that the intended alleged leasing is in fact a disguise sell of the sugar factories at throwaway prices to politically correct entities and/or individuals without any regard to the interests of stakeholders and the public at large. (8) Confirm the fears that, in fact, the intended leasing of sugar factories has a hidden intention and agenda of creating domination of the sugar industry by one or two players through close ownership and control of multiple milling companies in the sugar growing zones by lessors. (9) Elucidate measures, if any, put in place by the Ministry of Agriculture to safeguard interests of cane farmers in order to protect them from exploitation by the lessors of State owned sugar companies. (10) Explain how nucleus estates of the public millers will be protected against misappropriation by bidders whose notoriety in cane poaching and destabilisation of the sugar industry is well known. (11) Explain why agriculture, a fully devolved function, is still under the tight grip of the national Government to the near exclusion of county governments. Mr. Speaker, Sir, this Statement affects Kericho, Kisumu, Busia, Kakamega and Vihiga counties. I would have loved to have one or two members to comment despite your ruling."
}