Deputy President William Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza now alleges that President Uhuru Kenyatta secretly sold the ports of Lamu, Mombasa and Kisumu to foreigners.
In a statement dated Wednesday, June 29, and shared by the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Director of Communications, Wanjohi Githae, Kenya Kwanza alleged that Uhuru penned the deal to auction the port during his secret trips to United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the final deal sealed during Raila Odinga’s birthday party held in Mombasa.
Ruto’s faction argued that Uhuru assented to the deal that will see the Dubai-based company take over operations at the three ports.
“Today, we reveal to Kenyans a clandestine plot by the outgoing Handshake Government of Uhuru and Raila to illegally mortgage our Ports of Mombasa, Lamu and Kisumu, to a foreign country.”
“In a secret deal under the guise of an Economic Cooperation Agreement with the United Arab Emirates, and which epitomises grand corruption; Uhuru has assented to a rip-off that will see a foreign privately registered entity – Dubai Port World FZE – take over these key national infrastructural assets,” the statement read in part.
“Indeed, why would a government with only less than five weeks to leave office hurriedly and secretly auction the operations, development, redevelopment and management of all our ports to a foreign entity?”
The DP put to task the Uhuru-led administration to explain to Kenyans why they would risk handing over national assets to a foreign entity in a bid to secure personal interests.
“Under the ill-disguised Economic Cooperation Agreement supposedly signed on March 1, 2022, by the CS Treasury, Ukur Yatani, Kenya will cede ownership and control of not only the three ports but also supporting infrastructure at the ports and in the hinterland,” added the Kenya Kwanza statement.
Ruto challenged Uhuru to make public any process and procedure under the Public-Private Partnership Act (PPP) used to make the agreement, which the Kenya Kwanza coalition presidential candidate claims are riddled with legal issues.
Among the concerns raised by the DP include lack of public participation hence signaling that the deal was speedily secured by few people in government before the August 9 polls.
He stated that the deal violated the constitution and Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act which directs that such agreements ought to be transparent, competitive, cost-effective and equitable. Further, such deals ought to involve Parliament, the Cabinet and county governments.
Ruto questioned the credibility of the Dubai-based firm, challenging the government to release the details of the firm’s owners, cost of the deal and other companies that applied for the same tender.
“Kenyans must also know whether the procurement of the company was a government-to-government agreement and, if so, why section 4(2)(f) of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015 did not apply.”
“From the shortcuts, we have exposed; the auction of our ports looks like corruption, it is swimming like corruption, it is shouting corruption, and it is certainly corruption,” argued Kenya Kwanza.