The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) has launched an investigation into bribery allegations at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) after a passenger, Clay Onyango, reported extortion attempts by airport staff.

According to KAA Chairman Caleb Kositany, the government is taking these claims seriously and has initiated a thorough investigation into the matter.

Clay Onyango had raised concerns that individuals with tourist visas were being subjected to harassment and demanded to pay bribes before being allowed to board flights, particularly to Canada.

Kositany expressed the KAA's commitment to addressing the issue, saying, "Can someone help us to get Clay to respond? Any allegations made we take seriously and we will investigate thoroughly." Screenshots shared by Kositany indicated that airport authorities had been attempting to contact Clay since October 5, a day after he made the bribery allegations through a series of TikTok videos.

In response to the allegations, a JKIA staff member reached out to Clay, expressing their intention to investigate the matter and requesting more information about the reported incidents of Kenyans with tourist visas being denied travel to Toronto, Canada.

Despite the communication from JKIA, Clay did not respond and continued to make further allegations regarding the conduct of airport employees on his social media accounts.

Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has pledged to oversee the management of JKIA to enhance its efficiency. In recent months, the airport has faced challenges, including a national power outage that temporarily left it in darkness due to backup generator failures. In response, the Transport CS terminated the employment of senior airport staff and announced plans to crack down on rogue businesses operating within the airport premises.