This archive report was first published on 22 October 2019.
On October 22, 2019, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) gave the green light to the Telkom-Airtel merger, putting to rest earlier concerns over the potential loss of public funds.
The Commission had questioned the merger, citing the possibility of public funds being lost as the Treasury sought to convert its loans in Telkom to equity. However, EACC ultimately decided not to pursue the matter, stating that it involved two private entities.
The government owns 40% of Telkom Kenya's shares, while Helios owns the majority 60%. According to EACC, this means that Telkom Kenya is not a state corporation, as parliament had implied. As a result, Telkom cannot be subject to EACC questioning under the State Corporations Act.
‘Preliminary investigations established that Telkom Kenya Ltd is a private company owned by the Government of Kenya through Cabinet Secretary, National Treasury and Helios Investors through Jamhuru Holdings Limited’ reads a letter to the Communications Authority.
