On Tuesday, November 20, 2018, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) was reported to have allowed Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho’s family freight businesses to resume operations at the Mombasa Port.
The companies, Autoports Freight Terminals Limited and Portside Freight Terminals Limited, had been shut down by KRA about eight months earlier. The tax agency accused the firms of being used to smuggle illegal goods into the country, including drugs and counterfeit goods. Joho denied the allegations.
The reopening came after the political handshake between President Uhuru Kenyatta and National Super Alliance (NASA) leader Raila Odinga, a development that had triggered speculation around Joho’s business fortunes. According to the report, the two companies were back in operation after the closure period.
On Monday, the company displayed a banner on an SGR container that read: “Autoports Freight Terminal Limited - your navigator in the logistics world - supports the SGR.”
When contacted, Joho declined to comment. Sources quoted in the report said he was pleased that the businesses had reopened because he had been losing millions of shillings daily while they remained closed.
