Tanzania's Agriculture Minister, Hussein Mohamed Bashe, has refuted claims linking Tanzania to the counterfeit fertilizer issue, stating that the product did not originate from their market.
In a statement issued on Friday, April 26, Bashe emphasised that Tanzania was not involved in the production or exportation of any counterfeit goods.
Expanding on the matter, Bashe clarified that only two companies were engaged in exporting products to Kenya through legitimate channels.
He affirmed, "Tanzania is not implicated in any fake fertilizer scandal, so please refrain from associating us with such practices."
“Please address your issues with shortcuts and questionable practices, as our trade policies are governed by principles rooted in integrity,” he added.
“If there is a mess, I recommend you clean it up, do not implicate Tanzania. It is not our way.”
The statement comes after a renowned Kenyan lawyer claimed that the fake fertilizer currently circulating the Kenyan market had been imported from Tanzania.
“I now have actionable intelligence that the fake fertiliser was manufactured and procured from Tanzania,” the lawyer had stated through his X platform.
“I challenge Waziri Linturi, National Cereals and Produce Board and MEMS to tell Kenyans the quarry in TANZANIA where the goat manure, sand and stones were mixed and in what proportions?” the lawyer demanded.
The ongoing fake fertiliser scandal has stirred turmoil within the Ministry of Agriculture, with several legislators demanding the resignation or dismissal of CS Mithika Linturi.
On Thursday, Bumula Member of Parliament Jack Wamboka affirmed that he had collected 110 signatures from MPs in support of a motion of impeachment lodged against Linturi.
"You're well aware of the happenings in this country and the fertiliser scandal and what we have been experiencing, the drama around it. This is not the first time we've had scandals around CS Linturi," the MP noted.
