Writes Bob Ndira-Uradi In Awendo Town

A Parliamentary aspirant in the newly created Awendo parliamentary electoral constituency has pledged that he would struggle hard to ensure that the much exploited sugar cane farmers get the better return for their crops.

He will work hand in hand with the Provincial Administration and to ensure police authorities in a joint concerted effort to get rid of cattle rustling, thuggery and insecurity in the small farming town of Awendo and it environs..

Joseph Otieno Owuor who is billed to be in the forefront of beating his rivals and a possible favorite of the electorate in the forthcoming contest the in the new constituency which was recently curved out of the old Rongo constituency said sugar cane farmers working within the sugar cane growing zones of the Awendo-based SonySugar company have a bone to chew with the management the facility.

He accused SonySugar for having made the unilateral decision to reducing the cane prices from K.shs 4.800 per ton to Kshs 3,800 per ton arguing this radical reduction would seriously hurt the cane growers economically.

SonySugar management made such drastic decision without consultation with the stakeholders, who is in this context are the cane farmers in the region. The reduction has negative impact on the income of the farmers.

The move is viewed as one way of impoverishing the cane growers, taking into account the current exorbitant prices of farm inputs. The cane growers still faces extra costs, including the costs of harvesting an transportation from the field to the factory which leaves them with only a peanut payment for their cane bills.

Owuor was speaking during an exclusive interview with this writer at his rural home near Dede market in Central Sakwa Location, Awendo district within Migori County. He said poverty index I the area remained high despite of high circulation of money in the areas as a result of sugar cane farming, production of made sugar and its sales by SonySugar, and something must be done to arrest the situation before it got out of hand

Owuor who is currently serving the Minister for public Services Dalmas Otieno as his Personal Assistant {PA} said members of the farming fraternity in the Awendo cane growing zones have a lot of grievances to complaint about, and which must be addressed urgently.

The farmer’s complaints are genuine and need to be addressed, taking into account that farm input such as fertilizers, labor and other overheads

“The costs of harvesting and transportation have also gone up threefold, exposing the cane farmers to a lot of suffering. Some of them could not adequately feed their family and at the some time pay school fees for their school-going children, hence the need for the prices of raw cane to e o the upward trend all the time.,” said Owuor.

Touching on the rate of crime waves in the region Owuor said this has impacted negatively on the business community in Awendo town and traders in the outlaying marketplaces.

The problem, he added, has come about because of the recent influx of so many people into the small farming town of Awendo and its environs. These people have come from all over Nyanza Province and beyond in search of green pasture and business opportunities, but some of them are suspected as having dangerous past criminal records and needed some kind of vetting by the local chiefs and police before they were readily allowed to access rental houses in Awendo town which they are using as hideouts while executing their heinous crimes.

Owwor scathingly criticized Awendo zonal director who represented the zone in the Kenya Sugar Board for working in isolation without effectively engaging the management of the Awendo-based SonySugar Company into a dialogue on various issues and problems affecting the cane farmers.

The KSB director for Awendo zone is Zachariah Okoth Obado who’s working relations with top manger of SonySugar Company is reportedly not very cordial.”The area KSB director is not serving the best interest of the farmers.

Owuor appealed to youth and women to register s voters in their thousands when the exercise started. This, he said, is the only way of ensuring that they voted for the ODM leader Raila Odinga to realize his presidential ambition and also to ensure that the party secure good number of MPs in the next parliament.

He said by registering in large number as voters the residents of Awendo district and Migori County would give the ODM a comfortable victory at the next polls,” The Wananchi must also ensure they enrolled as party paid up members to facilitate their active participation I the day to day activities of ODM in their localities.’

Owuor urged the ODM leadership to soldier on with the votes hunting campaign while ignoring the activities of political turn-coats and party hoppers who have fled fro the party in search of green pasture in other parties hoping to lay their hands in the campaign resources which is said to be in abundance and unlimited supplies plus ill-gotten drugs money included.

Owuor who is facing three other aspirants vying or the same seat is believed to be somehow much experienced in public affairs, having gained a lot of experience during his services with Dalmas Otieno, which has exposed him to access the operations of the government system works, while most of his rivals for the same seat are said to be green horns.

Ends

photo of Joseph Owuor an aspirant for the Awendio parliamentary seat on