- Nyakera said they are organising a meeting with the former Prime Minister so that they can hand him their grievances to present to the president
- He said though the Act has been challenged in court, the president and the CS can pick a chairman and CEO to head the Tea Board of Kenya revived by the Act
Tea farmers are seeking an audience with President Uhuru Kenyatta through former Prime Minister Raila Odinga to have the new tea regulations effected.
Former Transport PS Irungu Nyakera said the Act, assented to by the president on December 23, 2020, has been challenged in court, frustrating farmers' efforts to have the laws implemented.
“The only person who can help farmers is the president as farmers cannot compete with people at KTDA,” Nyakera said.
The PS said they are organising a meeting with Raila whom they will hand the farmers grievances to present to the president.
The former PS said though the Act has been challenged in court, the president can pick a chairman to head the Tea Board of Kenya, while the Cabinet secretary appoints a chief executive officer to run the board revived by the Act.
Nyakera said there is a need to change the KTDA management and have new people who will streamline the agency.
“We also want the Tea Board to be operationalised by the president. We request the president and the Agriculture CS Peter Munya to appoint the chairman and the CEO respectively and allow respective principal secretaries to join the board so that it can be operational immediately,” he said.
Nyakera said upon the change of KTDA management, they will demand a forensic audit so that those who authorised farmers’ money to be deposited in Imperial and Chase banks accounts which later collapsed with the money can be brought to book.
"Farmers will start following up on those behind the depositing of their money in the collapsed banks soon after the Tea Act is implemented and the Tea Board is formed," he said.
The PS has been in the forefront in pushing for tea reforms that led to the formulation of the new regulations by the Agriculture cabinet secretary.
Lawyer Patrick Ngunjiri who has also been pushing for the reforms said farmers want KTDA directors to withdraw the cases in court saying they did not authorise their directors to file them.
“Farmers want their directors to withdraw these cases so that they can continue enjoying the benefits of the Tea Act,” he said.
Ngunjiri said if the cases are not withdrawn, farmers will call for an Annual General Meeting, use their powers in the Company’s Act and memorandum articles to convene the meetings and elect their directors.
They spoke at Chinga community hall in Othaya, Nyeri, on Sunday when Tea Board of Kenya officials held a civic education for farmers on the Tea Act.
The farmers were drawn from Nyeri and Murang’a counties.
Farmers, Ngunjiri said, have agreed to collect signatures and write to the court calling for the withdrawal of the cases.
Cecilia Wanyanga, a farmer, said the civic education enlightened farmers on the benefits of the new Act and said they welcome it.
On monthly increments from Sh16 to Sh21, Nyakera told the farmer to take the money but said it is still little and should be increased to over Sh25 to 30. Muthoni Waithanji, a farmer, said farmers should be receiving Sh36 to Sh40. The Sh5 added, she said, is meant to hoodwink farmers.
-Edited by Sarah Kanyara