As doubts continue to simmer across Western Kenya over the controversial leasing of Nzoia Sugar Company to tycoon Jaswant Rai, reports from Rai Plywoods (K) Ltd, another company under his control, have intensified the growing outrage, as a picture emerges of exploitative labour conditions, systemic neglect of workers, and entrenched impunity, all of which are now fuelling mass resistance in Bungoma and across the region.
Employees at Rai Plywoods, a timber processing and manufacturing company under the Rai Group, describe a workplace embroiled in disregard for their rights, where retirees wait years for their dues and staff are routinely subjected to delayed payments unless they resort to strikes.
Even those fortunate enough to receive partial payments are allegedly compelled to navigate opaque legal channels, being redirected to specific law firms in Eldoret, raising questions about collusion and the deliberate obstruction of due process.
Behind the company’s industrial façade lies a system where compliance with employment law is selective at best, and where job opportunities are increasingly skewed in favour of foreign hires, largely Asian, who lack local legal grounding but are tasked with overseeing African workers.
The result, workers say, is a racialized power structure that erodes workplace protections and entrenches inequality, all while shielding senior leadership from accountability.
“Hello Cyprian, kindly hide my identity. I wish to bring to public attention what is happening in Rai Plywoods K Ltd under the leadership of Jaswant Rai, who now wants to take over Nzoia Sugar. First, Rai Plywoods K Ltd has not paid people who retired two to three years ago, and those who have managed to get paid are directed to go to specific lawyers within Eldoret town. I hope you understand why special lawyers. Second, some staff have not been paid, and if they have to be paid, they have to strike. Third, Rai creates jobs for Asians who understand nothing about labour laws in Kenya; hence, they keep oppressing Africans.”
These complaints from Rai Plywoods mirror concerns raised over other Rai-owned businesses.
PanPaper in Webuye, once a regional industrial giant, is yet to regain its former prominence under Rai’s management.
What was envisioned as a revitalization project has instead become a symbol of industrial decay, with the town it once supported now grappling with economic stagnation.
Despite this track record, the government went ahead with leasing Nzoia Sugar to West Kenya Sugar, part of the Rai Group, as part of a wider privatization effort.
The deal was finalized over the weekend with a pledge of Ksh 5.6 billion towards factory rehabilitation and operations.
This comes even as Nzoia Sugar’s workers remain unpaid for 28 months, with total salary arrears amounting to Ksh 2.3 billion.
The takeover has triggered fierce political and public backlash.
Leaders from the Western region have described the lease as a betrayal of public trust and an illegal transfer of a critical economic asset.
Farmers and workers fear that Nzoia will follow the same path as other Rai acquisitions, where promises of reform and revitalization give way to stalled operations, asset stripping, and deteriorating labor conditions.
Demonstrations erupted in Bungoma on Monday, with residents, farmers, and leaders blocking highways and attempting to access the factory grounds.
Security forces responded with teargas and live rounds in the air to disperse the crowds.
The unrest followed a court order issued on April 23 halting the lease but which appears to have been disregarded by both the government and West Kenya Sugar.
Rai’s expanding control over Kenya’s sugar and manufacturing sectors is also raising broader concerns about unchecked private monopolies, opaque business dealings, and the systematic erosion of public institutions.
His portfolio now includes West Kenya Sugar, Sukari Industries, Olepito Sugar, Menengai Oil, Timsales, Tulip Properties, RaiPly, and Webuye PanPaper, giving him immense influence across multiple strategic industries.
Nzoia Sugar, founded in 1975, was built to serve both government and smallholder farmers, with over 23,000 hectares of cane under outgrower management.
Its privatization, with its 98% government ownership, has ignited intense debate, particularly as the company’s strategic importance to the region’s economy and livelihoods makes the lease a deeply contentious issue.
The state has framed the move as part of a broader agenda to revive struggling parastatals, yet the process has been marred by a lack of transparency, minimal local consultation, and disregard for legal procedures.
Among the voices of dissent is Zacharia Barasa, a local cane farmer, who fears that under Rai’s leadership, Nzoia Sugar will cease to operate as it once did.
Barasa has expressed concern that the raw materials from his farm, along with those from other growers in the area, will be redirected to West Kenya Sugar’s mills, leaving local farmers with nothing.
“If Rai takes over, he will close Nzoia. He’ll take our cane to West Kenya and leave us with nothing,” he said during the protests on Monday.
His fears echo the sentiments of many others in the region who believe that Rai’s management will not prioritize their interests, but instead push them out in favour of his other business ventures.
The protest also saw the active participation of several key figures from the region, including Democratic Action Party–Kenya (DAP-K) leader Eugene Wamalwa, Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya, and politician Cleophas Malala.
