Former Rarieda MP and Kenya Sugar Board chairman, Eng. Nicholas Gumbo, has demanded the removal of Siaya Governor James Orengo from office and the prosecution of half of his executive, accusing them of presiding over a scandal that defrauded more than 400 residents of at least Ksh200 million.
Speaking in Kisumu on Tuesday during a meeting on the management of the Sugar Development Fund (SDF), Gumbo accused Orengo of feigning ignorance over the loss, which he said saw desperate Kenyans robbed of about Ksh400,000 each under the governor’s watch.
“If we had a functional legal environment, that is enough scandal to take the governor home. The governor cannot say he does not know when over 400 desperate Kenyans are robbed of over Ksh400,000 each, nearly Ksh200 million stolen from poor people we should be protecting. With a proper judicial system, that is enough to not only take him home but to jail more than half of his executive,” Gumbo charged.
He further linked the scandal to the recent sacking of 382 employees in the county health department, saying accountability must be enforced to safeguard taxpayers’ money.
Turning to sugar sector reforms, Gumbo, who chairs the Kenya Sugar Board, said stakeholders had convened in Kisumu to deliberate on procedures for administering the Sugar Development Fund, created under the Sugar Act 2023.
The fund, which became operational on September 21 last year, is financed through multiple sources, including the Sugar Development Levy (SDL), charged at 4% of sales, and a share of revenue from imported sugar. It is designed to provide low-interest loans to farmers, particularly women, youth, and persons with disabilities, to boost cane production.
“The whole idea of the reform in the sugar sector is to put money into the pockets of all players, millers, farmers, cane cutters, weeders, and transporters. Once we finalize procedures, funds will be loaned to farmers at simple interest so that they are able to pay after sales,” he said.
Gumbo emphasized that reforms are key to sustaining cane farming and strengthening the value chain, warning that factories cannot thrive without sufficient cane.
