Agriculture Cabinet Secretary nominee Mutahi Kagwe has acknowledged the presence of cartels in the agricultural sector.
Kagwe while appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Appointments on Tuesday vowed to dismantle the cartels if appointed to the post.
“I’m quite aware that there are cartels in this ministry. I know cartels fight back. Not only would I expect them to fight me back once I start fighting them, in fact, I’m ready for the battle because I know it’ll come,” he said.
Kagwe reiterated that he will face the cartels head-on, drawing from his experience in dealing with similar challenges at the Ministry of Health.
He expressed confidence that despite the cartels, there are enough people in the ministry, Parliament, and in Kenya who will be supportive of the fight.
At the same time, Kagwe said if approved, there will be a rule of thumb in the ministry that if a product is not being used in its country of origin, it will not be used in Kenya.
This will cover fertiliser, GMOs or seedlings.
“There will be no product that is going to be sold in this country, under my watch, in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock that is going to be a product being tested here,” he said.
“We are not Guinea pigs. We will not be used by anybody as Guinea pigs.”
Addressing the issue of fake seeds and fertliser, Kagwe said the issue affects not only food security but also national security.
He explained that is because if someone has been using products or feeding their animals substandard feeds, they are prone to die.
“This is a matter that I would like to work with this House to create more civility in terms of the penalties that are involved when people sell fake fertilisers and seeds,” Kagwe said.
