Residents vow to fight for Miwani Sugar land

Residents of Muhoroni and Tinderet subcounties have vowed not to allow anybody to grab the multi-billion-shilling land that belongs to Miwani Sugar Company.

During a stakeholders’ consultative meeting on Sunday, the residents said the land belongs to them saying their forefathers gave it for the construction of the company 99 years ago.

The factory with dilapidated machines is under receivership alongside Muhoroni Sugar Company.

Last month, the Environment and Land Court in Kisumu declared that Crossley Holdings owns the land. But Miwani Sugar has appealed the ruling and awarded a stay order

Led by Muhoroni MP Onyango Koyoo and Kenya Sugarcane Growers Association secretary general Richard Ogendo, they said the 10,000 acres belongs to Kamagaga, Kabar, Wang’aya, Sidho and Nandi communities.

Koyoo said they are working together with his Tinderet counterpart Julius Melly to address the issues affecting the sugar sector including the Miwani land.

He said they are committed to ensuring the land belongs to the original owners who are members. 

“We will do anything possible to ensure the land is reverted to the original owners. If the government is unable to bring investors, the community will be in charge and take back their land to make good use of it,” Koyoo said.

“We will question politicians who will come to seek votes. If you are not with the community on the land issue you have no moral authority to seek votes.”

Koyoo challenged Kisumu leaders to change course and join the communities to ensure the land goes to investors who will revive the factory and rejuvenate the economy or back to original owners.

He put on notice some politicians allegedly working with cartels to defraud Miwani people of their property saying they will soon expose them.

Koyoo said they are ready to take the Miwani land issue to the East African Court in Arusha, Tanzania, to ensure justice is served to the original landowners.

Failure by the government to address their grievances, he said the people of Miwani resolved that they will stage a mass demonstration to push for their rights.

Koyoo called on President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga to intervene.

He said he will continue to respect the voice of his electors irrespective of what lies ahead.

Koyoo said the communities have mandated him to explore possibilities of taking the case to African Court over what they termed as lack of confidence in Kenyan courts.

He faulted politicians who have failed to stand with the community saying the time will come when they will be questioned about their stand of Miwani land.

Ogendo said if there is no potential investor to revive Miwani the only option is for the government to walk out and allow the communities to take back their land.

He said the communities have decided that there will be no further negotiations on the issue of Miwani Sugar Company land.

They said it is either an investor to revamp the factory to make it more vibrant or the land for the community.

Ogendo challenged Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o to declare his stand on the Miwani land saga and the way forward.

“We want those supporting other people to take our land to explain under what circumstance they are supporting such corrupt individuals,” he said.

Joash Kowino Obwana, who read the resolution on behalf of the communities, said they need an investor to revitalise Miwani to help rejuvenate the livelihoods of thousands of people who depended directly or indirectly on the factory.

“The factory should be operational to ensure people get food, money, to take their children to school and realise the dreams on matters of development,” he said.

In the absence of an investor, Obwana who is a resident of Miwani said the land should be taken back by the owners who gave it to the company.

He said the community opposed busy bodies politicians who colluded with cartels to cheaply take or grab their property including land.

Obwana said they are fully behind Koyoo and have mandated him to champion for their rights. 

He lauded Koyoo for his continued fight for the rights of Muhoroni constituents especially on issues bedevilling the sugar sector and Miwani land issue.

“We have been to court to fight for what belongs to us and we will still be in courts. I appeal to the people of Muhoroni to continue supporting Koyoo in his endeavour to champion for our rights,” Obwana said.

Bishop Julius Okelo Okungu, who comes from Miwani, said the communities have categorically stated that Miwani land belongs to them.

“We are ready to make a sacrifice and they will not allow or tolerate anybody to interfere with their land. The land was handed over to us by our forefathers and we can even identify their graves,” he said.

Okungu said the communities will not go back to where they were decades ago citing the increased poverty level due to the collapse of the Miwani factory.

“We cannot allow only a few individuals to gain more while the communities around are languishing in poverty. We shall face them head on because we know them,” he said.

Okungu asked Koyoo to hire lawyers to help communities to file a case at the African court as well as petition Chief Justice Martha Koome to intervene on the matter.

Kenya National Sugarcane Federation of Farmers, Miwani branch secretary Kipngetich Chepkwony said they will not accept cat and mouse games.

He said farmers have suffered for 21 years and it was high time their concerns were tackled effectively.

“We are aware of some powerful people who are out to make farmers poorer so that they can take the Miwani land, will not vote for such individuals,” Chepkwony said.

“Miwani land will only be taken if we are dead. No land will be given for free in the Miwani sugar nuclear.” 

He said the lease which was given to Miwani Company in 1948 has so far elapsed.

“The law dictates that when the lease is over then the land should be taken back to communities Kisumu and Nandi. We will not allow at all cost our land to be grabbed,” Chepkwony said.

Charles Osongo, an elder said the land belongs to them. He threatened that they would curse anybody who dared touch their land.

“We will not allow our land to be taken and we are ready to die,” Osongo said.

Crossley had sought to restrain the miller and four government institutions from laying claim to the land. It also sought compensation of Sh6 billion it claims it has lost in income.

The parcel of land has been at the centre of controversy for nearly three decades and had been a subject of a criminal suit over an alleged fraudulent transfer.

Crossley told the court that it acquired the land through a public auction, but the government denied them possession of the land.

At the time of the purchase, the company also claimed that the miller was privately owned, with the government only owning 49 per cent of its shares.

The petitioner argued that the land was valued at Sh696 million but was sold at Sh752 million. It told the court that it obtained the parcel in December 2007 and its title registered in 2008.

It further claimed that at the time it was buying the land, none of the authorities, including the miller, attempted to stop the sale.

Miwani Sugar, on its part, said the parcel was fraudulently acquired and described the auction as a sham.

The miller said there was no proof of payment and alleged that the fraudulent activities involved several people, including a sister company to Crossley Holdings.

Miwani claimed that Crossley was using the legal process to frustrate the State in its plan to lease out the suit property.

The Agriculture and food authority said the parcel belonged to the State and that its request for interested people keen on leasing the property is justified.

Justice Ombwayo said Crossley had proved its case and ordered Miwani Sugar and all the respondents to vacate the property within 60 days.

He ruled that the rights of Crossley were breached. He, however, declined to award the damages the company was seeking.

“The court grants an order of permanent injunction stopping all the respondents from selling, leasing, transferring, charging, mortgaging and granting licenses or easements to the land or in a way dealing with the land to the detriment of the petitioner,” Ombwayo said.

Edited by Kiilu Damaris