Good morning and welcome to our LIVE coverage of anti-Adani deal protests at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Wednesday, September 11 marks day one of Kenya Aviation Authority (KAA) workers strike. The workers had given the government and JKIA an ultimatum to make public a deal it entered with Adani Group Holdings to manage the international airport.
All employees of KAA downed tools as a result of failed talks with the government. At the top of the concerns was that the deal, involving JKIA and Indian conglomerate Adani Group, would lead to mass layoffs of employees.
Since the strike officially kicked off at midnight, no plane has taken off at JKIA. Representatives from the conglomerate were already at the airport carrying out assessment in the past days, though the fine print of the deal remains secretive.
Follow our live coverage of the strike below:
10:15 – Francis Atwoli Arrives on Scene
COTU boss Francis Atwoli arrives at the airport to address striking workers. Some protesters at the airport have been arrested following the morning chaos. Atwoli demanded the immediate release of arrested airport workers without further delay.
Atwoli blasted some Cabinet Secretaries as ineffective, saying they do not even pick up calls. He said he was headed into talks to represent the workers in a meeting with the government terming them the main stakeholders of the deal.
Long queues persist as travelers lament a lack of communication regarding their flights. They noted that nobody is receiving preferential treatment and everyone is being treated the same.
10:00 AM – NYS Deployed to JKIA
Cadets from the National Youth Service have been mobilised to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to support police in managing operations at the aviation hub.
Tana River Senator Danson Mungatana, however, demanded that the current Transport CS steps forward and addreses the media directly over the Adani deal, rather than awaiting formal summons from the Senate or National Assembly.
9:20 PM – Police Officers Turn Up to Morning Protests
Anti-Adani Deal civic action at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport has turned chaotic this morning. Police who had been deployed to the airport to contain the strike were filmed clobbering the airport workers who had downed their tools.
A few officers tried to calm down the situation but the chaos had already rallied up the protesters who were unrelentingly shouting at the officers in the face of opposition.
The police are said to have taken over screening duties at the airport after workers at all stations of the airport downed their tools.
