City lawyer Francis Njoroge Wanjiku has issued a demand to the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company Limited (KETRACO) over the controversial Adani deal as protests at major airports in the country persist.
In the letter obtained by Kenyans.co.ke, the lawyer has asked KETRACO to make public the particulars of any Private-Public Partnership (PPP) deal with the Adani Group.
“We wish to exercise our right to access to information held within your organization including but not limited to project agreements, financial capacity of the tendering company, the tendering process undertaken, public participation and approval of the Attorney General.”
Speaking exclusively to Kenyans.co.ke, Njoroge said the demands were prompted by the coy nature of the government in revealing the particulars of the partnership with Adani.
Long queues witnessed at JKIA as KAA workers down tools.
Photo
Edwin Dande
“Apart from the Cabinet’s approval, there was no public participation. There is no telling what the deal is about and that is why we want to move to court,” he said.
His statement comes amid a wave of protests at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Wednesday, September 11, as aviation workers downed their tools.
For the better part of Wednesday morning, operations were paralysed at JKIA and other airports across the country as aviation industry workers continued to stage strikes, leading to cancellation of flights.
Despite Adani Group’s controversial global track record, its subsidiary Adani Energy Solutions Limited (AESL) secured approval for a multimillion-dollar energy transmission project in Kenya.
This move, which was under the Private-Public Partnership (PPP) framework, instantly sparked fear that the government could be opening doors to more than just foreign investment.
Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU)’s Secretary General Moss Ndiema recently revealed part of the reason aviation workers went on strike was because of the government’s apparent ingenuity over the Adani deal.
“The government has not been straightforward and they are not genuine. They have not provided us with all the documents that we demanded. All we want is the government stop the Adani deal,” he stated in an interview with a local publication.
Meanwhile, the Kenya Kwanza government has largely attributed the move to partner with the Indian conglomerate to budgetary constraints.
After the fall of the controversial Finance Bill brought about by nationwide ‘Gen Z protests’, President Ruto has seemingly shifted focus to the private sector to drive his development agenda.
The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) have since successfully moved to court to block the controversial takeover.
An image of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
Photo
Kenyans.co.ke
