Former NACADA boss John Mututho has urged members of the parliament not allow any importation of maize to cater for famine victims but instead buy the crop from South Rift farmers who have plenty in their stores.
Mututho also stated that the drought crisis is a cover-up for the government to import duty-free maize.
Addressing a press conference at Naivasha town, Mututho warned that the government was ill-prepared for the drought that has hit Turkana, Baringo and parts of Tana River after failing to buy maize from farmers.
“The Government should use funds held by the Ministry of Agriculture to pay maize farmers, who will in turn release the produce in their stores and in the process save hundreds of lives,”he advised.
The former Nacada boss also called upon President Uhuru Kenyatta to curtail any plans to import maize to avoid another maize scandal.
The government is yet to conclude the matter of Sh7 billion that was lost by the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) after it allegedly procured four million bags of maize that were reported to be unfit for human consumption.
This comes after the government denied that people are dying of hunger in the country, with Deputy President William Ruto now terming the current reports of death due to drought effects as fake news.
Deputy President also said that the government is in control of the ongoing drought situation, adding that there should be no cause for alarm.
He said the government had released Ksh.2 billion for the supply of food and water to about 1.1 million Kenyans in the drought-stricken areas.
The government maintains that deaths reported in the areas affected by drought are as a result of ‘sicknesses’ and not hunger.