Govt Had Not Begun Talks- Mbadi Reacts To Ruto Cancelling All Adani Deals

“We have done due diligence as a government and the report from our partners is that there are a lot of questions around the proposed procurement method.”

Following the surprise announcement, Members of Parliament reacted to the cancellation, with Molo MP Kuria Kimani urging for change in the government.

He opined that President Ruto’s increased desire to listen to the pleas of members of the public was reducing the urgency for Kenyans to stage anti-government protests on the streets, with social media emerging as the first powerful tool of mobilization.

“We don’t just want to have those parliamentary sittings or those county hall meetings where the views of the public are heard. This means that the tweets these people make from the comfort of their homes to the TikTok videos they do, to the Instagram and WhatsApp statuses that they post expressing dissatisfaction that these views actually matter,” he expressed.

“President Ruto is coming out as a listening President and this administration is changing the way they engage with the members of the public. If this continues, even the protests we see on the streets or having people’s properties being destroyed will not happen. If the protests that we do on social media can result in the cancellation of the Adani contract, this means that we are headed in the right direction.”

Before President Ruto’s directive to Transport CS Davis Chirchir and his Energy counterpart Opiyo Wandayi to end the ongoing public-private partnership discussion, Adani and other executives were indicted in New York on Wednesday, November 20 by US prosecutors for their alleged roles in a yearslong, multi-million-dollar bribery and fraud scheme involving plans to develop a major solar power plant. 

The Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a statement that Adani, a key ally of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and seven other executives, including his nephew Sagar Adani, promised more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials to secure solar energy contracts.

According to a report by CNN, the impact of the allegations, which come more than a year after a US short-seller accused Adani Group of stock manipulation and accounting fraud, was immediately felt across the sprawling conglomerate.

It is worth noting that in October, CS Mbadi noted that PPP deals would still be required to upgrade the airport, regardless of the private investor involved.