Okiya Omtatah Explains Why Parliament Probe Can’t Halt JKIA-Adani Deal Discussions

Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has explained how the Parliament can stop the JKIA-Adani deal from going forward but maintained that the Parliamentary probe could not halt discussions surrounding the deal.

Speaking on Monday morning during an interview at Spice FM, Omtatah said that the Parliament of Kenya, being an oversight organ, can legally stop the proceedings of the deal as long as it is not contracted yet.

Since JKIA was built using taxpayers’ money, Omtatah termed the Parliament as the custodian which holds the public interest, thus they have the capacity to stop it on its tracks before it is contracted.

“Parliament has the capacity to stop it where it is. After it is contracted, Parliament lacks the tools to stop it. Only the courts can do it.” Omtatah clarified.

Passengers stranded at JKIA after all planes were grounded due to workers’ strike.

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Edwin Dande

When asked whether the ongoing Parliament probe could stop Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) from continuing the conversation with Adani, Omtatah said, “No, it does not stop it until an order is issued.”

Therefore, it could be more efficient if the Parliament could hasten the process in order to ensure that it is not too late by the time an order is given.

Seeing as probes in the Kenyan National Assembly sometimes take several months, this remains to be seen even though time is paramount in this situation.

The Adani-JKIA controversial deal has gripped the nation since a whistleblower Nelson Amenya reached out to Senator Richard Onyonka to expose the deal.

This, Omtatah says, is one of the major reasons why the deal should not go anywhere as due diligence was not done during the initial stages of the deal.

Public participation and transparency, also crucial in the process, were not properly carried out which makes the entire process unconstitutional.

If by any chance the contract is signed before parliament orders for the deal to be stopped, the courts will need to be involved and an audit of all documentation used in the process will need to be done.

All is not lost though as he says, “With that documentation, we can have an audit through the courts and it’s the courts that have orders to quash those contracts if they are not anchored in the law. And I think from what is coming out, I don’t see any competent court that would allow this thing to go through.”

Outlining the process required for a PPP deal, he said that several steps seem to have been overlooked especially since everything that is coming out about the Adani entity seems to paint it in a bad light; most recently of it being the Ksh40 million money laundering scheme in Switzerland.

Other concerns being raised by the impending takeover are matters of national security. Since the military uses the airport, intelligence might be compromised.

The documentation also shows that the fate of third-party companies contracted by the JKIA has not been properly outlined.

However, Omtatah said that alongside senators Ole Kina, Sifuna, Cherargei and Onyonka, they have vowed to turn every stone to ensure that the deal does not go through and that they get to the bottom of it.

Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah follows the Senate Public Accounts Committee session on March 19, 2024.

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Okiya Omtatah