Kenyans will pay Kes269 million to the Cereal Millers Association(CMA) as part of the increasing accrued interest in the maize subsidy programme.
This is after the government failed to pay the millers a Kes2.5 billion balance for supplying maize flour at a subsidized price due to the maize shortage that led to a surge in the price of Unga.
CMA was contracted to supply maize flour worth Kes4.4 billion but the government only paid them Kes1.7 billion with the status of the balance payment in limbo according to the revelations made before the National Assembly Agricultural Committee.
“The outstanding Sh2.5 billion has not been paid and continues to accrue interest which will be forwarded to the taxpayers and continues to increase until its paid,” said Paloma Fernandez, CMA CEO.
The Ministry of Agriculture led by former Agriculture CS Peter Munya signed a contract with 129 millers to supply subsidized maize flour from June 19 last year to August 20 in the contractual agreement.
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The maize subsidy programme contract also underlined that any delayed payment will attract interest until it is paid.
Twenty-nine of the 129 millers who were part of the Kes6.6 billion subsidy program, were from CMA.
The millers have severally written to Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u to remind him to honour the subsidy contract with millers decrying that the delays in payments have negatively affected their business.
“With this letter, we humbly request a meeting with your office in the coming week to further discuss the settlement of the outstanding bill. We are afraid that further delay of the payment will continue to adversely impact on the operations and running of the flour milling business and might also affect maize importation,” the letter read in part.
This comes amidst revelations by the government that the public coffers are dry and the economy has been crippled.
Currently, a 2-kilogram packet of unga retails from between Kes191 and Kes262 depending on the brand of the maize flour.
