Friday, May 19, 2023 – As the investigations into the poisonous sugar scandal get underway, details of how it disappeared mysteriously only to end up on the market shelves have emerged.
According to reports, a Thika-based company wrote a letter to various agencies requesting that the sugar that was condemned by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) in 2018 be handed over to them to turn the consignment into ethanol.
Consequently, a green light was issued to the company to pick up the 20,000 bags of sugar from Mombasa. The sugar originated from Zimbabwe.
Reports indicate that the sugar was released from Mombasa on April 12, even as officers from KEBS and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) oversaw the exercise.
The sugar was transported for eight days and arrived at the company’s premises on April 20.
Upon arrival, officers from various agencies also witnessed the arrival of the consignment, which was then kept under lock and key.
However, on May 4, when officers from KEBS went to inspect the consignment, it was discovered that the sugar was missing.
Interestingly, the locks used to protect the sugar were still intact.
According to media reports, a deal had been brokered between the scrupulous officials and an unsuspecting buyer before the sugar was released in Mombasa
It was at that point that an alarm was raised with the suspicion that the sugar had already made its way to the shelves across shops in the country.
The mysterious disappearance of the condemned sugar caused leadership changes at KEBS after the suspension of former KEBS MD Bernard Njiraini by President William Ruto.
Njiraini was replaced by Esther Ngari in an acting capacity.
26 other officials from other agencies have also been suspended pending the conclusion of investigations.
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