The Anchor October 2011: Kanziku Residents seek to restrain firms

Kitui residents

fight cement firms

Residents of Kanziku/ Mathima location in Mutumo district,Kitui County have moved to court to stop several mining companies from prospecting in the area.

Lawyers Onesmus Makau and Bigambo Abucheri represented the petitioners who also want the Respondents restrained from evicting them from the land in question. The petitioners sought interim orders from the High Court in Machakos stopping  the respondents and government agencies from  demolishing, transferring or in anyway alienating the suit premises pending the hearing and determination of the petition.

But judge Kihara Karanja declined to grant the prayed orders arguing there was no sufficient evidence to proof claims of harassment and intended forceful eviction of the petitioners by the respondents.

Judge Kihara gave the petitioner’s led lawyer Makau the option and liberty of seeking for more evidence to support the claims.

The respondents include Athi River Mining,Devki Cement and Steel Industry,East African Portland Cement Company,Criss Cross Company Limited and Bamburi Cement Company Limited.

Others are Ministry of Mining and Natural Resources, the Attorney General,National Environment and Management Authority,Kitui County Council and the Chief for Mathima Location.In their application,the lawyers for the petitioners claimed respondents one to five as listed above had threatened to evict their clients form their land.

They argued the petitioners will be rendered landless, homeless and would suffer gross violation of their inalienable human rights.In his affidavit, Solomon Malyunga said the residents of the affected areas will be greatly prejudiced and stand to suffer irreparable loss and damages if the five cement companies proceeded with the mining activities and enforcing their eviction notices.As the court matter rolled out. residents of the coal-rich Mui basin in Kitui county were laying tough conditions they want coal industry investors to meet before commencing mining.

This is part of positioning themselves to engage positively within the 500 square Kilometer coal belt nominated the Mui Mines and Minerals Company Limited to negotiate with ministry of Energy and would-be investors.During a coal delegates meeting held at the Mathuki Secondary School in Mui division of the Mwingi East district, Malili Ranch lawyer Erick Kyalo Mutua was named to represent the Mui Coal Basin Community. He is mandated to negotiate, make inquiries and communicate on behalf of the coal-belt community.The belt has an estimated 400 million tons of coal deposits and straddles Kitui and Mwingi districts. At the meeting, the community demanded that the ministry of Energy recognizes the community as an indispensable stakeholder in coal mining business. The meeting chaired by retired Assistant Commissioner of Police Charles Mukungi resolved that it must be involved in every step of the way in the planning and execution of the mining process. It remains to be seen how the lobby with engage the investors in vies of the many cases that are yet to be resolved in court. The meeting also demanded that the coal extraction factory be set up within the Mui basin and offer 90 per cent of jobs to locals. They insisted that the community should be entitled to 80 per cent of the royalties derived from the mineral resource.