The Kenya Union of Sugarcane Plantation and Allied Workers (KUSPAW) has threatened to move to court to stop the process of leasing State-owned sugar factories if the debt owed to workers is not cleared.
Union Secretary General (SG) Francis Wangara said the workers were owed over KSh5.5 billion yet there was no clear indication of how the debt was going to be cleared.
Though the Government in October last year announced a KSh117 bailout for the struggling firms ahead of the planned leasing, the union maintains that the debt owed to workers was not captured.
Wangara said it was unfortunate that workers who have gone for years without pay have been ignored as the Government rolled out the clearance of farmers’ arrears.
He said the union would not allow the Government to proceed with the leasing programme until the arrears are paid adding that it would not be possible for the investors taking over the factories to pay for a debt they did not incur.
“We started raising this issue a long time ago when the Government planned to privatize the companies. We moved to court and blocked the process. The matter is still in court and what we are telling the Government is that we are going to revive the case and block the leasing process if the debt is not cleared,” he said.
Addressing the media in his office in Kisumu recently, Wangara said the union was not opposed to leasing the factories but was concerned about the plight of the over 8,000 workers in the sector who have endured a lot of suffering since the firms started crumbling.
“All that we are fighting for is the rights of farmers so this should not be taken as a plot to stop Government programmes. We don’t have that muscle,” he said.
Already the Government has started leasing five State-owned sugar factories to private companies that will run the millers for 20 years.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has put up Nzoia, South Nyanza (SONY), Chemelil, Muhoroni and Miwani sugar companies for lease.
Interested investors had a deadline of February 15, 2024, to submit their bids after which evaluation was to take place before the successful bidders were announced.
The Government owns a 98.8 percent stake in Sony, Nzoia (97.93), Chemelil (96.22), Muhoroni (82.8) and 49 per cent in Miwani.
Fredrick Odiero
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