Luanda Mp Protests Sgr Station Relocation

Luanda MP Dick Maungu has protested the removal of a planned railway station in Luanda town on the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR).

Maungu said the station was initially planned at Ochwore, a stone’s throw from the existing metre gauge railway station at Mwibona, before it was moved to Yala shopping centre at the last minute.

President William Ruto and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni presided over the launch of the construction of Phase 2C of the SGR at Kibos in Kisumu on Saturday.

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The extension links Kisumu to Malaba in Busia County, at an estimated cost of approximately Sh122.9 billion.

The extension of the SGR is expected to strengthen regional trade and connectivity in East Africa and eventually link Kenya’s rail network with Uganda’s.

Maungu said it was unfair to move the station from the initial plan to Siaya County, despite Luanda town having hosted a station on the colonial metre gauge railway for more than 80 years.

He said the current plan to place the new station in Yala, Siaya County, rather than Luanda, would undermine a key commercial hub in Western Kenya.

“The new SGR railway is passing through Luanda, but we have a problem. For a long time, we have had a railway station in Luanda at Mwibona Market that has been serving us, but with the new SGR, our station has been moved to Yala, which is a smaller town compared to Luanda,” he said.

“This is an economic zone and the second-largest open-air market in the country after Karatina. Look at the turnover of money that goes through Luanda,” Maungu added.

He said the decision to move the station away from Luanda would disadvantage the region economically.

The MP was speaking during the issuance of NG-CDF bursaries at Mumboha Comprehensive School on Saturday, where he distributed cheques worth Sh65 million to 13,688 students in secondary schools, colleges, and universities.

Maungu said Luanda is a strategic corridor for the SGR and that retaining the railway station would benefit the local economy. He noted that the town has historically served communities beyond Vihiga County, including Siaya and Kakamega counties.

“This railway is opening up Kenya to Uganda, but what we are doing is denying our people opportunities. To deny us the station means our traders cannot move their goods and merchandise to surrounding markets on the SGR,” he said.

He added that ongoing developments in Luanda, including a modern market expected to host more than 1,000 traders and an industrial aggregation park, were planned with the expectation of a nearby railway station.

At the same time, Maungu raised concerns over the growing financial crisis in public universities in Kenya, which are struggling with an accumulated Sh100 billion debt.

According to him, more than 450,000 students are unable to access HELB funding, while universities are struggling to pay lecturers.

He said learning has also been disrupted by strikes linked to Sh4 billion in Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) arrears, while several key development projects in universities remain stalled.

“As a country, we must ensure that when our children rise through our education system, the system itself is strong enough to carry their dreams. Let us not just fund education; let us fix it,” he said.