President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni will open the Busia One Stop Border Post on Saturday amid 'resistance' from local leaders and residents who want specific issues addressed before the ceremony is held.
A sensitization meeting on Monday at The Quill Hotel on the operations of the One Stop Border Post (OSBP) saw Busia local leaders and residents take the National Government to task over its failure to honour a "gentleman's agreement".
Busia Chief Officer in the Office of the Governor Robert Papa and Members of the County Assembly David Luyemba, Moses Ochieng, and Bernard Papa said the National Government should come out clear on its trade off pledge.
Luyemba (Jubilee, Mayenje Ward) said if he had authority he would have told President Uhuru not to come and commission the OSBP until he gives an assurance on the Memorandum of Understanding.
"When I was working with the defunct local authorities we entered into an agreement with the National Government that any investor who will put up a OSBP will build for the County Government a Trailer and Bus Parks and be allowed to continue collecting revenue," he said.
"Kenya Revenue Authority is now chasing our people from collecting revenue within the OSBP jurisdiction. I am advising the Deputy County Commissioner (DCC) (Fredric k Ayieko) to tell the President to give us an assurance that the two parks will be built and the County Government allowed to collect trailer fees in Busia and Malaba border towns."
In a quick rejoinder the DCC promised to forward the concerns of Busia leaders and residents especially on parks and markets to the Cabinet Secretary Interior Dr Fred Matiang'i for further direction.
However, Ayieko called for patriotism so as to give the two heads of State a warm welcome. Busia KRA manager Davies Kiprop said they are ready to license customs bonded facilities in the county.
"We are also looking for a transshipment yard," he said as he wondered why there was no vehicle bazaar in Busia County.
He defended restriction on importation of cheap vehicles from Uganda saying the eight year rule does not allow such vehicles in Kenya. He said the only way out was to harmonize the age limit among EAC member states.