Mututho blames state for illicit brew rise in Nakuru

 

Former Nacada chairman John Mututho has blamed security agencies and the Interior ministry for the death of eight people after consuming illicit brews in Kabatini ward, Nakuru county.

Mututho said the Ministry of Interior and the subsequent CSs who have occupied the office, refused to sign the regulations popularly known as the Mututho laws.

The Alcoholic Drinks Control Act (2010) was expected to curb the production and sale of illicit brews in Kenya.

Speaking when he visited the affected families at Hodihodi Kabatini ward, Mututho said if his recommendations were followed, deaths caused by consumption of illicit brews in Kenya would have been a thing of the past.

“When Mututho laws were enacted, the minister was supposed to gazette five regulations, two of the regulations were critical, number one was the Mututho laws that defined accessibility, number two and the most important was quality regulation for alcohol,” he said.

He said these regulations are at the office of the Interior CS Fred Matiang'i awaiting a signature so that they can be taken to Parliament to be passed into law.

Mututho said the quality regulations for alcohol could have eliminated the sale of harmful substances such as methanol which are being used by unscrupulous traders for alcohol production.

Illicit brews have continued to cause havoc in the country with Nakuru residents blaming the security agencies of laxity in dealing with this menace. They also cited corruption.

According to the residents of Hodihodi, illicit brews have been in the area for long.

They accused the security agencies who are just 300m from where the incident happened of not taking action to eliminate the sale of toxic brews which have rendered most people in the area irresponsible.

Lucy Gathoni, a niece to 35-year-old Eunice Nyambura who died after consuming the poisonous drink, says the cheap and illicit alcohol is easily accessible and needs to be eliminated to save lives.

“A few months ago the security agents promised to crack down and eliminate sale of illicit brews after a resident died, but so far nothing has been done,” Gathoni said.

Kabatini MCA Peter Ng’ang’a concurred with the residents that little has been done by the security agencies in the area to curb the sale of illicit brews.

“The people who sell these brews are well known by the police, the last time residents demonstrated over the brews, some of those selling them stopped the trade however, shortly after other sellers cropped up,” Ng’ang’a said.

“We need the police to deal with this issue because losing eight lives is serious,” he added.

Governor Lee Kinyanjui has called on Parliament to enact laws for the legalisation of traditional brews such Muratina which he said are safe and the low-income earners can afford.    BY THE STAR