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"id": 178504,
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"speaker_name": "Mr. Okemo",
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"id": 198,
"legal_name": "Chrysanthus Barnabas Okemo",
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"content": "Thank you very much Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for that protection again. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was talking about the privatisation programme which the Minister made a commitment that he would bring to the House or to the Departmental 3636 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES November 26, 2008 Committee sometime earlier so we can then be able to discuss and understand what is in the plans of the Government as far as privatization is concerned. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I also want to bring to the attention of the House the observation that the Minister, earlier in the year, made a commitment to this House that he would give us an update on the Government's legal framework on the public-private partnership arrangement. I think the House would want to know how far the Government has gone with this framework. It is important as part of the conditions for raising money that would go towards meeting this Budget. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I wish to comment a little bit on the sugar subsector which affects many of our constituencies, particularly from the western region where sugar-cane is the mainstay of our people. Mr. Wetangula very ably brought out the issue of how the sugar-cane farmer has literally been reduced to a beggar. They grow sugar-cane and it takes 24 months or more before harvesting. At the end of that period, they receive statements with debit balances. Is that the Kenya we want? Is that what the Government intends the sugar-cane farmer to get out of his sweat? Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is all well to talk about coal generation and producing electricity which is sold to the national grid. However, the benefit that comes out of coal generation only form the bottomline for the sugar millers. It is reflected as a huge profit at the end of the financial year and they declare dividends. The farmer who is producing the raw material that produces this electricity gets nothing out of it. Could the Government ensure that they give assurance to the sugar-cane farmer in this country that, where, like in Mumias Sugar Company, electricity is produced and sold to the national grid, part of the benefits will go directly to the sugar- cane farmer who produces the raw material? As it is, it is a raw deal. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, if the sugar-cane farmer; whose only source of livelihood is the money he gets from the sugar-cane and at the end of 24 months, he does not even get some money but a negative balance, what is the message we are passing to the farmer? Is it that he is condemned to poverty until he dies? So, the Minister, in consultation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Trade, should come up with an economic policy that will make sure that we do not have Mumias Sugar Company declaring profits of Kshs3 billion yet the majority of farmers get debits instead of some money in their pockets. That is a lopsided arrangement and it cannot work. Farmers, ultimately, are going to give up. What they are going to do is to stop growing cane. If they stop growing cane, Mumias Sugar Company cannot function. If Mumias Sugar Company cannot function, it will not rake in those billions of shillings it is raking in today! So, they ought to know that they exist because there is the farmer. The farmer produces the raw material that enables them to make the billions! Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I also believe that there are measures which can be taken very quickly to alleviate the plight of the sugar-cane farmers. That is because about 60 per cent of what is deducted from the farmers' payment goes to transport. The Sugar Act, in its present form, specifies that cane must be weighed on the farm by the farm gate."
}