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{
"id": 1399271,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1399271/?format=api",
"text_counter": 261,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Sen. Cheruiyot",
"speaker_title": "The Senate Majority Leader",
"speaker": {
"id": 13165,
"legal_name": "Aaron Kipkirui Cheruiyot",
"slug": "aaron-cheruiyot"
},
"content": "example, the Nandi where Sen. Cherarkey comes from. There are farmers in specific regions including areas of Chemase who they feel left out because there is no sugar mill in that area. If you zone them to a particular region, they either have to operate with West Kenya, which is fairly distance of West Valley in Kericho or Kiboss, Chemilil and Muhoroni. It is important for the Board to be given powers to look at such rare occurrences on case by case basis and grant permission to pick and collect cane from such farmers. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, I want to urge my colleagues to support this Bill in the proposal that is being made and the very solid proposals on how to grow and move this sector on issues of licensing and setting up of the sugar arbitration tribunal so that if there are changes, you can propose to it. The only part of the Bill that I hold a different view much as I second, is on the breakdown of the levy given what is about to be done in this sector on privatization and on farmers now being able to access input. The fertiliser subsidy programme has contributed immensely to the growth of this sector. That is why last year, a bag of 50 kg of sugar was costing upwards of Kshs9,000 or Kshs10,000. Today, if you go to a wholesale supermarket, it is Kshs5,200 because of the supply of fertiliser and other inputs, so that our farmers can produce. Of course, God has also been good to us by ensuring that there is sufficient rain. With this Sugar Levy, we have to rethink our numbers because, unfortunately, Sen. (Dr.) Murango, you will bear me witness; when the various players of that industry appear before the Committee on Agriculture, you will see that because of the long history of this particular industry, there are no farmer association and organization committees that you would say this one specifically handles a particular task. You will find that they are fragmented and broken. They say, South Nyanza Sugar Farmers Association and so on. Therefore, when you dedicate such huge amounts, say five per cent of the Sugar Development Levy to farmer associations without providing specifically which these associations are, you can end up providing an avenue where certain well-connected cartels can end up lining their pockets with money that would have been otherwise put to good use, such as may be extending credit services to farmers who are waiting for long periods before they are paid or before their crop is ready. The sugarcane farmers organization, in my honest opinion, and I hope the Ccommittee can listen to me, instead of using a percentage, you would rather set it to a particular figure, Kshs70 million or Kshs100 million maximum because their duty is just to voice out the concerns of farmers. Otherwise, farmers already have a representative who sits on the board. I do not think that through such amorphous organizations where they are not properly defined in law, it is prudent use public funds to set billions of monies in their direction. Therefore, with those very many remarks, I beg to second and urge our colleagues that we conclude this business, kindly, before we proceed on recess."
}