Governor Wanga defends demolition of animal feeds factory

Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga operating an excavator during the groundbreaking ceremony of the new county headquarters in Homa Bay town West Ward on May 31, 2024. [James Omoro, Standard]

Controversy surrounds the decision by Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga to construct the county headquarters at a site that had been earmarked for the construction of a factory.

Yesterday, Governor Wanga's administration defended the decision and claimed that the site was not suitable for the construction of animal feeds because it lies next to Kabunde Airstrip.

In a statement released by the County Government Spokesperson Atieno Otieno, the county argued that the animal feeds project had stalled for a long time and did not meet the mandatory construction standards.

Ms Atieno claimed that the project has been transferred to Riwa Special Economic Zone in Karachuonyo Constituency.

"The Arujo animal feeds factory did not meet the requisite approvals from the requisite agencies such as Nema, Kenya Airports Authority and Kenya Civil Aviation due to its proximity of 300 meters to Kabunde airstrip. The animal feeds industry was incompatible with the flight path and posed a risk of bird strikes," she said.

The county government launched construction of its new headquarters at Ohongo village, Kanyabala Location in Homa Bay Town West Ward on May 31 this year.

The same site had earlier been earmarked for construction of the animal feeds factory whose cost was estimated to be about Sh500 million.

Construction of the factory was started by former Governor Cyprian Awiti's government in August 2015 but it had not been completed until May. Part of it had been roofed.

The decision by the devolved unit to bring down the facility caused an uproar among residents who believe public funds have been lost as a result of the demolition.

Two activists now want the county government to provide them with crucial information on the reasons for the demolition of the factory.

Evance Oloo and Eugine Obisa have written a letter to several officials to demand answers for the demolition.

The activists alleged that the demolition was carried out without adherence to the procedures stipulated under the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act 2015 and related regulations.

The human rights defenders want information regarding the valuation of the building before it was demolished.

"It has come to our attention that the building was not listed in the county's assets register and the disposal process was not documented for audit purposes," the letter reads in part.

They also claimed that they did not find any evidence to prove that the demolition was approved by the relevant authorities.