The Kenya Union of Sugarcane Plantation and Allied Workers (KUSPAW) has threatened to move to court to bar the leasing program for state-owned sugar factories.
Union Secretary General, Francis Wangara, said leasing exercise will not take place until the government clears Sh4.7 billion in salary arrears for workers, which were long overdue.
The firms, he added, owed the union Sh10 million which has not been remitted despite being deducted from workers’ salaries.
Wangara said the union has written to the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture Mutahi Kagwe over the matter calling for prompt action to avert the long court process.
“We have written to the Cabinet Secretary and the Principal Secretary where we have made ourselves clear that the leasing shall not take place until the debt is cleared. We have no problem with the program but we want the factories to be handed over to the new investors with a clean balance sheet,” he said.
“If our call is not heeded then we have no option but to go back to court and stop the process,” he said.
He added that the union must have representation on the leasing committee to ensure that the plight of all workers in the sector is put into consideration before the factories are handed over.
The union, he said, will not accept any form of discrimination against the workers, whom he added have endured a lot of suffering after having gone for months without pay.
“No worker is going to be laid off. We want to be part of this process so that, as the investors take over, there is a smooth relationship between them and the workers,” he said.
Notably, the government has put up Nzoia, South Nyanza (SONY), Chemelil, and Muhoroni sugar companies up for lease.
Interested investors have up to March 21, 2025 to submit their bids after which evaluation shall take place and successful bidders announced.
The government owns 98.8 percent stake in Sony, 97.93 percent in Nzoia, 96.22 percent in Chemelil and 82.8 percent stake in Muhoroni.
By Chris Mahandara
