Loggers want permits to move harvested trees in Kakamega
A group of saw millers from Kakamega County led by Mr Jotham Mbakaya (centre) wants permits to transport trees they had harvested before the directive on logging was issued. PHOTO | BENSON AMADALA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- DP William Ruto announced that the government has suspended logging for three months.
- A group of saw millers said they would incur losses if they are not allowed to transport the trees they have harvested.
- They said they cut them down before the DP gave a directive against logging.
Saw millers from Kakamega County want the government to give them temporary movement permits for trees that were harvested before it suspended logging.
They said they will be unable to repay loans and their businesses would shut down if the logs are left to rot in the forest.
FEAR
A spokesman for the group, Mr Jotham Mbakaya, said they had been licensed and prequalified to operate as millers in the county after paying an annual fee of Sh30,000.
They have employed up to 20 workers, he said.
Mr Mbakaya, who operates in Kakamega North Sub-County, said he had harvested trees worth Sh2 million and was worried they would rot if the rains continue.
The other saw millers who spoke outside the Kakamega County Ecosystem Conservator offices said they had invested between Sh2 million and Sh4 million in their businesses.
"We are allocated plantation of exotic trees which we harvest after paying taxes to the government and we are in no way engaged in illegal logging in the forest," said Mr Mbakaya.
PLEA
Mr Elam Lumwaji said: "We have made heavy investments in the business, including borrowing loans from commercial banks to sustain our operations. We are asking the government to reconsider lifting the ban temporarily.”
Ms Loice Cheptoo said the millers do not harvest indigenous trees in Kakamega Forest.
She said directive stopping logging would affect their businesses and plunge them into debt.
"We have borrowed loans to buy tractors and other machinery to run the saw mills. How will we repay the loans if the trees we harvested are left to rot?" said Ms Cheptoo.
The government suspended logging in all forests countrywide for three months as water levels in major rivers continued to drop at alarming levels.
Deputy President William Ruto said this would give the government adequate time to find a solution to the drying rivers.
