Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto has urged the government to stop the importation of maize from other countries saying it will be subjected to abuse and flood the market.
He said the national government should give farmers subsidized farm inputs to boost food production in the country instead of seeking to flood the market with imported maize.
Ruto said failing to put a ceiling on the tons of maize to be imported based on the needs of the country would open a window for unscrupulous businessmen to bring in cheap imports that would last several years.
The governor said importation of maize would only benefit politically correct business people and not the common man.
Ruto wondered what happened to the Galana –Kulalu irrigation scheme in Tana River County where the national government has pumped more than Sh 7 billion to grow maize under irrigation.
He said the scheme has apparently failed to achieve the desired results despite the billions of shillings pumped into it by the government and so much hype that went with it.
Ruto said the12 percent budget allocation to the devolved units was far much lower than what was expected to be released to the counties.
He demanded that the allocation to counties be pegged at 45 per cent of the budget which he said Jubilee had failed to attain in the last five years.
“CCM will support a coalition that pledges to devolve 45 per cent of the national budget to counties to spur economic growth and create employment opportunities for locals,”Ruto said.
He said all trained teachers in the country should be employed en-mass as opposed to replacing those who have left service due to natural attrition yearly.
