This archive report was first published on 4 September 2019.
Kenya: Nyali MP Mohammed Ali Accuses Joho of Family's SGR Deals ¶
Published on September 4, 2019
Nyali MP Mohammed Ali has accused Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho of allowing his family to benefit from the standard gauge railway (SGR) deals, as the region's residents and businesses lose their livelihoods.
Ali claimed that Joho's family is benefiting from the misfortunes of many traders and Mombasa residents who have lost jobs at the port as a result of the radical implementation of the use of SGR trains by importers.
"I want to tell the DPP and DCI that on Sunday, we read in the newspaper that the port was going to benefit only one family. We want you to take action against Governor Joho's family," Ali said.
Ali also accused Joho of hypocrisy, saying that when Joho was looking for votes in 2017, he said that the port's activities would be moved to Nairobi and Naivasha, but he would not allow that to happen. Now that the activities have been moved, Joho's family members are at the centre of running the Nairobi SGR facility.
However, Joho's allies hit back, saying that Ali was misinformed. Senator Mohammed Faki and Mvita MP Abdulswamad Nassir shrugged off Ali's claims, saying that Mombasa residents had lost jobs because of the policies put in place by the government.
"We cannot say that one person is benefitting because he is not speaking out against the government now. Where was Mohammed Ali when Joho was at the forefront in opposing the implementation of the SGR?" asked Faki.
He said that as Coast leaders, his camp had been putting pressure on the government to change the policy on the SGR.
"The cargo that we are receiving at the port is 30 million tonnes. Eight million is petroleum, which is transported by specific modes. About six million can be transported by SGR and what we are asking for is for the 16 million tonnes of cargo be shared by other people, including those with trucks. This is what we should push for and not say that one person is benefiting," added Faki.
