EXPOSE! The Ngiricis among politicians whose Illegal Sugar has Docked in Mombasa despite the Ban

The already ailing local sugar industry is headed for more trouble, thanks to Ngiricis and other higly placed businessmen.

Currently, Kenya is allowed to cap sugar imports from the 19 Comesa countries, an agreement that was first enforced in March 2002.This was intended to help the sub-sector lower its production costs to levels that would see local produce compete against cheaper sugar from the trading bloc.

Unfortunately, huge quantities of cheap sugar are lying at the Port of Mombasa after finding it’s way into the Country even as the CS for Agriculture announced the ban on brown sugar importation.

According to an insider at the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the records show how companies owned by highly placed politicians have imported sugar between 500 and 1000 tonnes allegedly mostly from Zimbabwe and Zambia as follows:-

A Company called Peros has imported – 1000 metric tonnes from Zambia.
Swispolo another 1000 metric tones from Zimbabwe, Ngirici’s Alpha Trading- 1000 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe), Genten -1000 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe), Marangu – 1000 metric tonnes (Mauritius), Bushido- 500 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe), and Jazz- 1000 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe).

The others are Grain R US.- 1000 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe), North Star- 500 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe), Miminergy- 1000 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe) and Granergy -1000 metric tonnes (Zimbabwe) bringing the lot to 11, 000 metric tones however according to the insider it could be more than 35,000 metric tonnes.

This is despite the fact that the cabinet secretary for agriculture Peter Munya expressly banned the importation of brown and white sugar last month including raw sugarcane mostly from Uganda for processing by local millers in western Kenya.

Mr. Munya’s banning orders stated that: “The ministry of agriculture has immediately suspended the importation of brown/white sugar into the country until further notice. Suspended pre-shipment approvals and extensions of all sugar import permit with immediate effect until further notice.”

The orders further stated that the importation of raw sugarcane into the country is prohibited with immediate effect and that all applications for the importations of brown sugar shall be subjected to the sugar imports/export regulations soon to be gazette.

In 2018 Hon Wangui Ngirici together with his brother were implicated in the mercury-laced sugar that took the country by storm. Her billionaire husband is also known to engage in molasses lucrative business.

Patrick Njiru Kuria together with his wife, however, obtained court orders barring police from arresting them over the illegal sugar which was impounded in Ruiru, Kiambu County.

Mr. Munya said that the ministry of agriculture will work closely with counterpart agencies to intensify cross border surveillance along the Kenya Uganda border to ensure that there is no smuggling of raw sugarcane from Uganda into the country for milling in Kenya.

 “I have also directed the Kenya Sugar Directorate to ensure that all these orders are complied with and implemented with immediate effect,” he said.

On the contrary, our source indicated that the above-mentioned quantities of sugar have already been imported into the country by the said companies in total contravention of the banning orders issued by the Minister.

Speaking on the phone, Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) Director-General Antony Muteithi denied having knowledge of the said sugar that had been imported into the country and promised to make a follow-up to get to the bottom of it.

Joseph Wandera a farmer and Transporter from Busia County said: “These orders caught millers and farmers in this region totally un-aware with some counting huge loses after thousands of their raw sugarcane that they had imported from Uganda is rotting in trucks stranded at the border because they cannot be allowed into the country.”

Juma said that now without raw sugarcane supplies to keep the factory churning out sugar the newest miller in the country is threatened with imminent closure with extremely huge financial losses since it had to import the crop from Uganda to sustain itself.

He said: “What is compounding the whole mess is the fact that despite the government banning the importation of brown/white sugar there are companies with well-connected individuals who are importing the commodity with total impunity thus totally jeopardizing the future of our local sugar industry.”

In a press statement issued at the beginning of last month, Mr. Munya said the Kenyan Sugar industry is a significant employer and contributor to the National economy. The most substantial contribution of the sugar industry is its salient contribution to the fabric of communities and rural economies in the sugar belts. Households and rural businesses depend on the injection of cash derived from the industry.

“The industry is intricately woven into the agricultural economies of Counties in Western Kenya with an emerging presence in the Coastal area, specifically Kwale. In 2019 the country produced 440,935mt against the consumption of 1,038,717MT,” he said.

The CS said that other than sugar consumption for food, the Kenyan Sugar industry has the potential to generate 260MW of electricity and produce enough ethanol to run all the vehicles currently running on diesel. That is, in addition to the employment and income it provides presently to Kenyans in the sugar belt.

Mr. Munya argued that to be a globally competitive producer of Sugar and give sugar cane farmers a better return on their investments, the Government has looked at addressing perennial challenges in the sector.

He said that the government had identified that some of the most critical factors plaguing the industry include the lack of regulations to govern the industry. The high cost of production. A wasteful and expensive cane haulage system. High debt burden.

The others are the acute cane shortage. Lack of adequate research and funding to support cane development. Low sucrose yield. Low-value addition. A weight-based cane payment system that gives farmers no incentives to grow high sucrose cane. Aging equipment and obsolete technology and crippling sector-wide governance issues.

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