Counties that impounded and torched miraa in transit should compensate farmers, Igembe South MP John Paul Mwirigi has demanded.
Mwirigi, who is the youngest MP in the current Parliament, said on Friday that Meru farmers have lost millions of shillings after Mandera, Lamu, Kilifi, Tana River, Samburu, Garissa and Wajir counties banned the stimulant.
“We are not ready to bow or kneel and beseech anyone for our crop to get sold. Miraa is like avocado, tomato and other crops. Let them close supermarkets and other farm produce outlets if they mean well,” he said.
He said justice should always be the shield and defender of the mwananchi. "We have the right to live as other Kenyans. My people should be compensated for their lost earnings in past two weeks and be provided with food.”
Nyambene Miraa Traders Association (NYAMITA) chairman Kimathi Munjuri said farmers are being terrorised and impoverished.
“We have improved hygiene standards on picking, packaging and distribution. We wash and sanitise hands. We frequently fumigate and disinfect our vehicles and planes before and after cargo delivery,” he said.
Mwirigi claimed that the Meru community was discriminated agalnst and harassed in the name of fighting coronavirus pandemic.
“Last night, nine vehicles at Kula Mawe were burnt and I urge Governor Kiraitu Murungi to talk to other governors to rescind the ban on miraa,” he said.
The Meru community has invested millions of shillings on miraa farming.
Not long ago, President Uhuru Kenyatta brought hope to the farmers while opening the Muringine Miraa by promising guaranteed security and support.
Mwirigi said the farmers are now asking, "Did the President lie to us? Is miraa a cash crop as gazetted when it is impounded and burnt? Is miraa exempt from the curfew as a farm produce?"
He said he was ashamed to associate himself with a government that kept quiet when his community was economically crippled.
He, however, urged Kenyans to continue washing hands regularly, staying at home and heeding government directives aimed at stopping the spread of Covid-19.
The sale of miraa has been banned in Tharaka Nithi, Makueni, Isiolo, Kitui, Nyandarua, Wajir, Garissa and Mandera in the war against coronavirus.
- mwaniki fm
