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The row in the management of Kenya Tea Development Agency has intensified after Kiambu tea factory directors challenged the decision to oust David Muni Ichoho.
The directors who met at Gachege tea factory in Gatundu North, took issue with KTDA management board for moving to replace Ichoho with Enos Njiru Njeru, after he reportedly wrote a resignation letter.
In their statements, the factory directors challenged the board’s ‘unprocedural’ dethronement of Ichoho, upholding that the embattled official had obtained court orders to block his removal from office.
The High Court temporarily had suspended the ouster of Ichoho pending the determination of a case he had filed challenging his removal.
Justice Jairus Ngaah in a ruling delivered a week ago certified the matter as urgent, temporarily blocking the removal of Ichoho from the position.
“KTDA has structures and rules that govern it. Ichoho was not subjected to the normal processes of removing KTDA national chairperson from office. The directors’ opinion and that of farmers who he actually represents were never sought. As we speak, the status quo, as per the directions of the court, shows that Ichoho is still the chairperson of KTDA,” said Gilbert Githae, a director at Mataara Tea Factory.
The directors described Ichoho, who took up the position of KTDA board chairman in June 2021, after the ouster of the previous office holder Peter Kanyago , as a transformative person who has successfully implemented reforms that have seen over six million farmers earn better from tea produce.
Under the leadership of Ichoho, the directors stated that farmers are able to earn better, receive their monthly pay on time, get subsidised fertilisers among other positive impacts that have restored sanity in the sector that had been crippled by cartels and mismanagement.
Led by Emmah Wangari, the factory directors urged the government to depoliticise the tea sector to avert taking farmers back to the era of low returns despite the hard work put in by farmers.
“Unless something is urgently done to dismantle the cartels in the tea sector, we might soon see the collapse of this area that employs millions of farmers. The sector has been rising for the last two years after decades of mismanagement and embezzlement of farmers’ money but the same cartels who used to loot from farmers want to come back,” Wangari said.
Ichoho who is also the Zone I chairperson said he will not be coerced by the cartels who have been scheming to stage a coup in the KTDA management to begin embezzling the farmers’ money.
“If you want to make money from the tea sector, go to the farm where the money is. Otherwise, we will not sit and discuss how to loot from our hardworking farmers. We are Christians and the teachings we were given cannot allow us. While I am not fighting anyone, I won’t be coerced or cowed to do things contrary to the wishes of my employers- farmers,” he said.
He noted with concern that cartels have already begun infiltrating the sector and are at the verge of collapsing the gains made since the government began implementing new tea reforms.
Ichoho urged the government to promptly intervene and rescue farmers from impending losses should the cartels make a come back in the sector.
The embattled chairperson at the same time announced that farmers will henceforth begin receiving higher monthly and bonus payment following successful implementation of the reforms he has been implementing. BY THE STAR