New railway project faces more hurdles
What you need to know:
- Mr Mvurya said residents had accepted the project but would reject it if the China Road and Bridge Company reneges on its promises.
- Kwale Senator Boy Juma Boy said leaders would not allow land to be taken without compensation.
Leaders in Kwale County have vowed to block construction of the standard gauge railway, unless residents are compensated for their land.
They said locals had been duped by investors in the past and that they would not sit back and watch it happen again.
“Investors have tricked our people into giving them their land, but later on fail to compensate them,” said Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya.
Mr Mvurya, who spoke during a meeting between land owners and the China Road and Bridge Company in Kwale on Monday, said residents had accepted the project but would reject it if the company reneges on its promises.
He also claimed local leaders had not fully been involved: “If this does not change, we will not be able to defend the project if anything happens.”
Kwale Senator Boy Juma Boy said leaders would not allow land to be taken without compensation.
“We will never accept any type of oppression where a project such as this one will take our land and affect us,” said Mr Boy.
Kinango MP Gonzi Rai warned that residents would resist any attempt to sideline them in job opportunities.
