Billionaire industrialist Jaswant Rai has retracted all lawsuits from the Appeals Court contesting the leasing of Mumias Sugar Company (MSC), just a few days following his abduction by unidentified individuals.
The withdrawal of these cases, which had been obstructing the revival of the once-prominent sugar mill, coincides with President William Ruto’s recent warning to take action against those he accuses of exploiting sugarcane farmers in the Western Region.
West Kenya Sugar, under the ownership of the sugar magnate, has submitted three notices of withdrawal to the Court of Appeal, seeking to bring an end to their legal petitions contesting the allocation of Mumias to their competitor, the Sarrai Group. This particular case has been caught in legal proceedings for nearly two years.
This billionaire’s decision, also the proprietor of Kabras Sugar, aligns with the move made by Vartox Resource Inc., a Dubai-based company, as they withdrew their own petition from the same court. The company had been challenging the leasing of Mumias Sugar.
Vartox Resource Inc., represented by their legal team, stated their intention to withdraw their application that contested the 20-year lease granted to the Sarrai Group in 2021. This move came right after President William Ruto issued threats to sugar tycoons who were allegedly exploiting residents of Western Kenya.
The firm had been seeking significant compensation from Mumias Sugar Company due to loans acquired from Victoria Commercial Bank. These loans had been transferred from two lending institutions that had utilized Mumias Sugar’s ethanol and power generation plants as collateral.
The application filed with the Court of Appeal read, “Take notice that Vartox Resources Inc., the third respondent in these proceedings hereby wholly withdraws its application dated December 25, 2022.”
Interestingly, Vartox Resources Inc. chose to withdraw its multi-billion-dollar case just two days after the CEO of Victoria Commercial Bank was arrested and questioned on suspicion of money laundering.
In their appeal, Vartox had contended that the 20-year lease granted to the Sarrai Group, based in Uganda, was an attempt by another financial institution to prevent other bidders from managing the sugar company. The Dubai-based company had asserted during their initial petition that the awarding of the lease to the group led by Sarbi Singh Rai had lacked transparency.
Addressing residents of Kakamega, President William Ruto disclosed that sugar tycoons were prolonging legal cases in court, thereby exploiting Kenyans for years. He cautioned that these tycoons had three choices: to leave the country, face imprisonment, or meet their fate in the afterlife.
“I have urged them to withdraw their court cases before we begin reorganizing the sugar industry,” Ruto stated.
