Members of Parliament say Adani Airport Holdings Limited’s controversial deal to take over and facelift the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi is akin to ‘mortgaging the country’ and should be stopped in its entirety.
In a session where Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi appeared before the National Assembly Public Investment Committee on Commercial Affairs and Energy on Tuesday, legislators called for a special audit of the $1.85 billion deal (about Ksh.239 billion at current rates).
The committee directed the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) managing director “not to do any further thing with Adani until this committee submits a report to Parliament by the end of October.”
“It looks like KAA cannot guide itself, Adani is the one guiding you and Parliament is here to do that,” said Pkosing the head of the committee.
The MPs raised concern over the Indian Adani Group-owned company’s sudden interest in several Kenyan sectors.
“How comes all of a sudden Adani is everywhere; SHIF, KETRACO… it is now becoming a big shareholder of Kenya,” Pkosing noted, a reference to Adani’s Ksh.94 billion deal with the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company Limited for the construction of 422 kilometers of power transmission lines and its purported interest in running Kenya’s new social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF).
The committee directed and audit into Adani’s selection for the JKIA facelift project, testaments of the work, the scope of what Adani will do, and an assessment of whether a privately-initiated proposal (PIP) was the most suitable procurement method.
The audit should also look into what happens with other Kenyan airports and airstrips amid talk that the Indian firm targets beyond JKIA, and the fate of KAA staff who have been protesting over concerns the deal poses a risk to their jobs.
CS Mbadi has repeatedly defended the deal, saying “it underwent review and significant changes were made.”
“If Kenyans still think they want to discontinue the deal, who am I to say no? but let us allow for constructive engagement,” the minister told MPs, adding, “If a better deal emerges, we can stop the Adani one, but the new developer will need to compensate Adani for their involvement.”
