A section of Kenya Kwanza MPs has told President William Ruto to continue cracking the whip on officials within his government that have been implicated in the fake fertilizer scandal.
Led by National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, the lawmakers separately called for decisive action against all State officials that have participated, directly or indirectly, in the influx of fake subsidized fertilizer in the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) depots.
So far, at least eight senior officials at the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KeBS) have been suspended over issuance of certification and marks of quality to two companies which have been implicated in the scandal.
“I thank the government for the measures it has taken on this issue of fake fertilizer that has been distributed to farmers. The fertilizer was being distributed by some companies. I commend the government for the action it has taken,” Ichung’wah said.
“All those individuals implicated in distributing fake fertilizer must be charged accordingly in court and jailed. These are people who have been derailing the good program initiated by the government of Kenya to provide affordable fertilizer to our farmers,” the Kikuyu MP added.
Kieni MP Njoroge Wainaina described the perpetrators of the scandal as immoral and aimed at fighting the government’s food security program.
“It is immoral for any Kenyan to sell fake fertilizer in this country. The government should be firm and trace the owners of these companies that have been participating in that unscrupulous business. We want to see people going to jail because they are economic saboteurs and they have no space in society,” Mr Njoroge said.
The National Assembly committee on Agriculture has grilled Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi over the scandal that saw some farmers purchasing sub-standard fertilizer at various NCPB depots in the country.
Nyeri Town MP Duncan Mathenge maintained that officials at KeBS and NCPB should be probed over the issue and action taken against those who will be found capable of spreading the fertilizer.
“All we are saying is that heads must roll. This whip must be directed right from the procurement process at the NCPB, at the quality assurance process within KeBS and any other agency involved,” Mathenge said.
“Our businesspersons must start engaging in ethical business practices. It is no longer tenable for us to continue suffering at the hands of some businesspeople in this country,” he added.
His sentiments were shared by Nyeri woman representative Rahab Mukami who called for speedy investigations over the matter.
“We need to get a speedy solution on this matter because farming contributes heavily to our economy as a nation. Not all fertilizer in the market is fake. But for those implicated, they must be dealt with accordingly,” Mukami said.
Government Spokesman Isaac Mwaura, on Thursday, said Linturi is not directly linked to the scandal and told off a section of people calling for the CS’s resignation.
“That is a long shot. There is no way he (Linturi) is culpable of this; he is not involved. The investigations are ongoing and so far the minister of agriculture is working his level best to deliver,” Mwaura said.