Police in Gatundu on Monday stopped irate farmers who have stormed the home of a Coffee Society's Vice Chairman from destroying property over delayed payments.
More than 1,500 famers from Kimaratia Coffee Cooperative Society stormed the home of Kimani Gichuru protesting over delayed payment of coffee delivered between May last year and July this year.
On seeing the angry farmers, Kimani and his family escaped fearing for their lives. However, some quick intervention by the police saved the home from destruction.
The farmers, hailing from three coffee factories; namely Gichuka , Gitare and Gachika accused the management of borrowing money from millers and using it for their personal needs as farmers continued to wallow in poverty.
Kiganjo MCA Samuel Mwarage said that the farmers could neither meet their daily needs nor afford to pay school fees for their children as they solely depended on income from coffee farming.
Calm was later restored after Gatundu MP Moses Kuria and Gatundu Deputy County Commissioner Stephen Kihara drove to Kiamatia Society offices and addressed the angry farmers.
Kuria promised to follow up the matter and told those farmers with secondary school children to submit a list of their fees dues which he promised to secure as the payment for their coffee produce was being pursued.