Mukumu Girls: 800 bags of contaminated cereals to be incinerated in Mombasa

The 800-bag consignment of maize, beans, and rice was flagged off from the school by Kakamega Governor Farnandez Barasa, who was flanked by other political leaders and regional commissioner Samson Irungu, and delivered to the Mombasa-based Bamburi Cement plant for destruction.

The first time Governor has defended the move, adding that the consignment has been escorted by security officers, even as the report on the nature of contamination in the killer foodstuff remains unclear

“For accountability purposes, the commissioner here and I want to assure the public that the maize and the beans that were contaminated are now going to be destroyed professionally, and in compliance with NEMA procedures,” Barasa told journalists at Mukumu Girls.

The county commissioner has stated that the destruction, which is scheduled for Friday, will be witnessed by representatives of parents, teachers, and National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) officials who have accompanied the consignment.

“The food will be escorted by armed security officers. There will also be teachers, parents and the representatives of the political class, and you can even see, if the lorry is stuck you can follow. We want them to touch the ash,” regional commissioner Irungu said.

The food destruction follows a heated political exchange in the county between the executive and the oversight arm, even as Deputy Governor Ayub Savula last weekend urged police to arrest Kakamega Senator Dr Boni Khalwale and women representative Elsie Muhanda for interfering with the planned food destruction.

“We don’t want politics in this issue. We want the police to arrest Khalwale and even Elsie for meddling the management of the school. Destruction of that foodstuff is not just something you do without following the law as stipulated by NEMA,” Mr Savula told Khwisero residents earlier this week. 

Meanwhile, the school is set to reopen next week. Last week, however, a meeting at the school ended in disarray on Saturday after police officers were called to disperse a parent protest.

A melee and Chaos erupted after parents discussing the school’s reopening, following a disease outbreak that killed four, demanded the destruction of maize at the institution, which is suspected to be contaminated.

To avoid another tragedy, Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu ordered the destruction of the maize on April 15. All three students and the teacher who died have since been buried, despite calls from affected families for the government to compensate them.