Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua says a group of cartels in the coffee sector attempted to bribe him in a bid to slow him down in enforcing coffee sector reforms.
Speaking in an interview with Inooro FM, the DP did not reveal the names of individuals who wanted to bribe him, but he says he was promised a kickback of Ksh.2 for every kilo of coffee exported from Kenya.
Gachagua says it all began after President Ruto tasked him to steer the Coffee reforms. He says he held a meeting with all coffee stakeholders and in that meeting a resolution was reached to reinstate the coffee board of Kenya.
He says they agreed that the Kenya Planters Cooperative Union to take charge of milling, and the multiple licenses issued to brokers be revoked to ensure that each step of the coffee value chain was independent of the other.
Gachagua says that those recommendations sent shock waves in the sector and the said cartels started to hoard coffee in a bid to frustrate the farmers’ effort.
The cartels expected the government would give in and reinstate them but Gachagua said he stood his ground.
“They came to see me in my village and asked whether we could hand them back the three licenses. I told them, ‘When you broker our coffee to foreign countries, you get high returns, how about, whatever you fetch from exports, we (Kenyans) split the spoils. Were you to give the farmer Ksh.150, you would be allowed to continue your business.”
“They went and later sent their representative (a black person) who comes from our region but who works for them (foreigners). He told me these foreigners are offering Ksh.2 per kilo of coffee exported. I did the math and it would be good returns and I would be rich but I cannot sacrifice our farmers,” said the DP.
He added: “I refuse to sell out the farmer who elected me. I need money, just as any other citizen, but I cannot be corrupt. “My expenditure is very limited, I eat very little food, my wife is a pastor and you bet she does not need that much even for her hair maintenance. My sons are employed and well capable, I do not need the money.”
Gachagua admitted that restoring sanity in the coffee markets has been challenging, but said the battle is 70 percent won.
“I have succeeded in every area, tea, and milk in particular, but coffee has been quite challenging. The people who buy our coffee have held the government and the coffee farmer hostage,“ he said.
The DP says plans are underway to cripple the said cartels by selling directly to the market, including Starbucks.
“When Starbucks lands in Kenya those cartels will come looking for me because they have been sellling to him at a high cost…. the day they will see Ruto and Gachagua with him (starbucks) they will they will look for me to renegotiate. Should they come with reasonable terms and prices, I will definitely listen to them,” he said.
In 2019, policies were created to create a value chain in the coffee sector. The new policies were to ensure that it was not the same person buying, selling, processing and brokering for the market.
In the spirit of fairness, the policies were meant to ensure that the cartels were not taking advantage of the milling losses and grading, since the farmer was not always present to ensure that they got a fair deal
Meanwhile, the DP says the government is already of sealing a deal to secure a promising and viable Chinese market for Kenyan coffee.
