Co-operative Development minister Joseph Nyaga has said he is not responsible for the problems facing a farmers' union. "Even the Earth knows that the Kenya Planters Co-operative Union was dead before I became the Min-ister for Co-operatives and Parliament should not sacrifice me," said Nyaga. "No returns have everbeen made by KPCU man-agers since 1983, hence I cannot bear the liability but only save the situation as a government minister."

The minister was speaking yesterday in Kiambu when officially launching the Diocese of Mt Kenya South Sacco. "I know I am 100 per cent right that coffee farmers want KPCU to be put under receivership and I urge the parliamentarians to go round the country where coffee farmers are and hear their views," said the minister.

He said putting the union under receivership "is the only way to save it like what happened with Uchumi". "I fully support the receivership idea and the government is doing all it can to see that the large-scaleand small-scale farmers benefit," said Nyaga. He said the KPCU saga has been politicised "to deny its interim board members the opportunity to save its assets from being grabbed by corrupt individuals".

The chairman of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture, John Mututho, termed the receivership "an illegality since the receiver manager is not registered".