Linturi explains the fertilizer scandal and said that he failed full control over the ministry

The former agricultural cabinet secretary Mithika Linturi has finally spoken out and defended his role in the controversial fertilizer scandal, which developed during his term.

In a television interview on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, Linturi admitted that the inferior fertilizer had actually entered the market under his observation – but the claim that it was a fake was strongly refuted.

Linturi has clarified a crucial point that he believes that many Kenyans have been misunderstood. While the fertilizer did not meet the necessary standards, he insisted that it was not fake.

“If you produce fertilizers that do not bend the standard – you pay 10%, but you deliver 8% or 26% and only manage 24% or 10% and offer 7% – does not mean that plants cannot absorb it,” said Linturi. “It only means that the plants do not receive the maximum benefit because the product has fallen under the expected standard.”

He emphasized that the inferior fertilizer still contains usable nutrients and can support harvest growth, even if it does not provide optimal results.

In order to support his argument, Linturi on NPK fertilizer, for which 10% nitrogen, 26% phosphorus and 10% potassium are required. He said that the fertilizer is as inferior and not fake if a component – e.g. B. potassium – up to 8%.

“The harvest cannot benefit completely,” he said, “but the fertilizer still works to a certain extent.”

Linturi: Politics kidnapped the narrative

Linturi accused the political climate of converting a technical problem into a public scandal. He said as soon as the problem was politicized, it lost the direction and was difficult to handle.

“When the matter was politicized, we lost the direction in relation to management,” he said. “We live in a country in which someone, as soon as someone is the goal of public outrage, nobody wants to hear the truth.”

He described the intensive public counter reaction, which was charged as unfair and emotionally, and said she created an atmosphere in which facts were no longer important.

Linturi also admitted that the internal confusion within the Ministry of Agriculture prevented him from treating the scandal effectively. He said contradictory statements from various civil servants had only deepened the misunderstanding in public.

He claimed that he had no full control over the ministry and contradictory statements from officials only deepened public confusion.