• Residents lived in fear of diseases.
• Environment and Land Court ruled that the Environmental Impact Assessment licence was acquired illegally.
Image: FAITH MATETE
Kibos Sugar Factory has been ordered closed for discharging raw effluent into the River Kibos in Kisumu East.
Residents have complained for many years over the pollution of the river, whose water they use for domestic purposes. They lived in fear of diseases.
Justice has finally been served.
On Wednesday, the Environment and Land Court in Kisumu ruled that the company's Environmental Impact Assessment licence was acquired illegally.
Three Kisumu East residents, Benson Adega, Eric Ochieng’ and Bether Opiyo, sued the sugar factory in October last year.
Kibos Sugar and Allied Industries Ltd was listed as the first respondent together with Kibos Power Limited (second), Kibos Distillers Limited (third), Nema (fourth) and the Kisumu government (fifth).
The residents said their right to a clean environment had been violated. They accused Kibos Sugar, Kibos Power and Kibos Distillers of polluting the environment.
Justice Stephen Kibunja issued an order of permanent injunction restraining the company from continuing with operations.
He said they must first carry out EIA studies and submit the report to Nema for approval for a fresh licence.
The judge also ordered the defendants to demolish unapproved structures on land LR No 654/23 and 11273 in Kibos, to restore the environment to its original status.
“Should they fail to obtain fresh EIA licences in 120 days, and should they fail to comply with the restoration order, the petitioners are hereby authorised to appoint an auctioneer to carry out the said restoration order and recover the costs from the first to the third respondent,” Kibunja said.
The company's lawyer, Charles Onyango, said the factory employs more than 9,000 people and has an obligation to its clients and suppliers, including cane farmers.
“If the order of injunction is immediately enforced, it will result in unwanted consequences," he said.
The Kisumu government's lawyer, Jared Sala, said the county will be heavily prejudiced since the first three respondents are the biggest revenue earners and the biggest employer.
“The county is extremely apprehensive that without a stay, the said persons who were employed by the company will go to the streets resulting in serious insecurity,” he said.
The county's economy depends on the factory, which is the only surviving mill after others collapsed.
The petitioners' lawyer, Jude Ragot, opposed this, saying the factory had more than a year to solve the issues.
“It's in bad faith for them to ask for more days to comply. This application is not made in good faith,” he said.
Ragot said the company has benefited from constitutional violation for more than 10 years and it was surprising it wanted to continue for more.
Justice Kibunja gave the defendants seven days to appeal.
Muhoroni MP Onyango K'oyoo welcomed the ruling. He said the licensing entity should be prosecuted.
On October 31 last year, Kibunja granted interim orders stopping the company from milling sugarcane, producing power and distilling alcohol pending determination of the case.
But the company appealed in an Eldoret court and received orders to continue operating.