KEBS dismisses allegations of condemned sugar being released into the market
The standards authority affirmed that they are keen on protecting Kenyans and called on the public to disregard the reports as unverified and alarming
The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has dismissed claims by opposition leaders that there was a consignment of 25,000 metric tonnes of contaminated sugar was cleared at the Mombasa port.
In a statement posted on its social media handles, KEBS dispelled the allegations, saying sugar processed locally or imported undergoes rigorous inspection, testing, and certification before it is released in the market.
“KEBS assures the Kenyan public that no consignment of sugar that is unfit for human consumption has been cleared for release into the market. We dispel the allegations going around on social media, as both locally and imported sugar undergoes mandatory and rigorous inspection, testing, and certification before release to the market,” it said in the statement.
The standards authority affirmed that they are keen on protecting Kenyans and called on the public to disregard the reports as unverified and alarming.
The clarification came hours after leaders of the opposition claimed that the authority had cleared the unfit sugar into the market, putting at risk the health of consumers.
Addressing the press yesterday, People’s Liberation Party (PLP) leader Martha Karua, alongside DAP-K’s Eugene Wamalwa, Nyandarua Senator John Methu, and Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, claimed the sugar had already been flagged as unfit at its point of origin.
“We are aware of a cargo of 25,000 metric tonnes of sugar that recently landed at the Port of Mombasa. This cargo has already been declared from its port of origin unfit for human consumption, yet the Ruto regime has quickly cleared it. What kind of government is this that puts its own reprehensible needs before the public’s wellbeing?” they said in a joint statement.
The leaders called for the immediate condemnation and destruction of the sugar to stop it from reaching consumers.
Karua claimed that the sugar was on its way to a factory in Western Kenya for repackaging and resell.
“This sugar is already on its way to a Western Kenya sugar factory to be repackaged and sold to Kenyans. The fact that it has been cleared so fast shows the heartlessness of this regime. They have made money their god,” Karua stated.
The opposition leaders accused the government of putting profits above public health, calling the move “commercial greed that is poisoning Kenyans.”
