Chinese company urges court not to stop SGR project

Politics and policy

Workers at the standard gauge railway construction station. PHOTO | FILE 

By BRIAN WASUNA, bwasuna@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• China Road and Bridge Corporation says in response to a petition filed by Kibwezi West MP Patrick Musimba that its employees have not trespassed on anyone’s land.
• Mr Musimba claims CRBC has illegally set up two camps, one of which is a stone-crushing site located next to a school, and that it is likely to harm the students’ health.
• The Chinese company is constructing the modern railway line that is designed to link Mombasa to the rest of East Africa.

A Chinese firm has pleaded with the court not to stop ongoing construction of the Sh366 billion standard gauge railway (SGR), arguing that it has not trespassed on Kibwezi residents’ land.

China Road and Bridge Corporation says in response to a petition filed by Kibwezi West MP Patrick Musimba that its employees have not trespassed on anyone’s land, and that the firm has only constructed access roads on land that has already been handed over to it by the National Land Commission.

Mr Musimba claims CRBC has illegally set up two camps, one of which is a stone-crushing site located next to a school, and that it is likely to harm the students’ health.

He has sued the National Land Commission, National Environment Management Authority (Nema) and the Attorney General. CRBC has been enjoined as an interested party.

“It is not true that CRBC employees have been trespassing on the property of the residents of Kibwezi. CRBC employees have been surveying the area in order to help with preparations for the construction of the SGR,” Hu Zhaoguang, CRBC’s deputy general manager says in court filings.

“If CRBC is stopped from conducting the preparatory works, which can be very time consuming the entire timetable for the SGR will be thrown into disarray. CRBC has spent a substantial amount of money to discharge all the work done so far,” added Mr Zhaoguang.

The Chinese company is constructing the modern railway line that is designed to link Mombasa to the rest of East Africa.

READ: Why China is keen on the standard gauge railway project

CRBC, which also constructed a section of the Thika highway, says it has employed over 4,000 Kenyans to help with the project, and that it will have engaged over 26,000 more by the time construction peaks.

But the MP has challenged the compulsory land acquisition process, arguing that NLC has short-changed some land owners by under-valuing their parcels and extending beyond the agreed upon measurements in some instances.

While the Chinese firm agrees that it has bought explosives, it does not confirm whether any of the land it has acquired is being used as a stone-crushing site.

The firm holds that it has only been surveying the area in preparation for the construction of the railway that will cut through Kibwezi alongside 30 other towns. The firm’s Environmental Impact Assessment, which has allowed it to carry out the surveys, expires on February 5, this year.

The Machakos High Court had in October last year stopped the compulsory land acquisition process, before reversing the order just weeks later.

CRBC has warned against stopping the project mid-way, as it will lead to additional costs. The project is a partnership between the Kenyan and Chinese governments that is expected to link the Mombasa port to Rwanda and Uganda.