Chirchir Chased Away From Senate For Missing Crucial Adani Papers
Roads and Transportation CS Davis Chirchir was questioned extensively by a Senate committee after failing to provide documents related to the contentious Adani-JKIA lease deal.
Chirchir had declined to comment on the issue, citing it as sub judice, which did not sit well with the senators.
The Senate Transportation Committee, led by Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, demanded extensive clarification.
They demanded to know whether the Kenya Airports Authority had signed an agreement with Adani Commercial Limited to lease Jomo Kenyatta International Airport under a build-and-operate model.
The @SenCommitteeKE on Roads met with Transport CS Davis Chirchir to deliberate on the plans by the Government to lease JKIA to Adani.
— Senate of Kenya (@Senate_KE) September 12, 2024
Senators instructed the CS to submit a response to the issues raised by the closure of business today and rescheduled the meeting to tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/bLMyIg4eQ3
“I also want you to address a preliminary concern that I have personally,” stated Sifuna.
“If a letter is dispatched from the Senate on August 6, 2024 pursuant to a request dated July 25, 2024 and you confirm that you’ve received it on August 6, 2024 at your ministry, how is it possible that even today, you don’t have any of the documents we have requested?”
The senators had asked the CS to submit documents outlining the deal, including details on the tender process, selection criteria, and Adani’s ownership structure.
“We have not entered into any deal with them. What we are doing is we are just reviewing a proposal,” Chirchir told the committee.
Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka: The CS for Roads and Transport, Davis Chirchir, attempted to invoke the sub judice rule, but the Senate overruled him.
— Mambo Mseto X (@MamboMseto254) September 12, 2024
The meeting has been adjourned, with an order to submit all documents related to the JKIA-Adani PIIP by the close of business… pic.twitter.com/1eBDSUT2QY
Sifuna expressed frustration with the lack of transparency, asking why the ministry had not submitted the requested documents despite receiving a formal request in August.
He emphasized that the sub judice rule does not prevent the ministry from providing documents and that the Senate required evidence of any ongoing legal proceedings to justify withholding the information.
In a letter summoning the CS to appear before the senators, the committee requested clarification on the involvement of other companies in the bidding process.
It also inquired about the future of JKIA employees and whether public participation had been conducted.
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei shared Sifuna’s sentiments, claiming that the sub judice rule does not apply unless the information is classified.
“Present evidence to us showing that the matter is actually in court. Because the matter in court does not even touch on the issues of labour,” Cherargei said.
“The CS wants to run away from the responsibility of giving feedback,” he added.
Senators demanded full disclosure, emphasizing the importance of transparency in a deal that could affect the country’s largest airport and its employees.
Efforts by committee chairperson Karungo Thangwa to have the CS make submissions were thwarted when members stated that they will not proceed unless they know what they are scrutinising.
“There is the issue of whether we should continue without any documents submitted by the departments,” Thangwa said.
“I want to tell you members that maybe the department wants us to chase them away so that they can spend another six months before they appear before the committee.”
“We are going to continue with this issue because it’s a matter of national interest.”
However, the committee members rejected the proposal.
“It is the responsibility of the ministry to table the documents and let us know what difficulty the ministry had from August 6 when they received the letter to today,” Sifuna said.
The CS will appear before the committee on Friday after the documents have been submitted.
Chirchir Chased Away From Senate For Missing Crucial Adani Papers
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