President Ruto’s nominee for Principal Secretary, Stephen Isaboke, is in hot political water. He’s facing tough questions over how he got shares in MultiChoice Africa—one of the biggest media giants on the continent.
Kenyans want answers, not spin. Why did a public servant walk away with a stake in a billion-shilling company that partners with the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC)? Was this a clean deal or a politically coated gift?
As Parliament digs into the facts, Isaboke is struggling to clear his name and prove the legitimacy of his Ksh 5.2 million investment.
Stephen Isaboke, the man President Ruto wants in charge of broadcasting and telecommunications, admitted he owns shares in GOtv, a MultiChoice Africa product.
He made this confession while appearing before the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on April 4.
Isaboke said MultiChoice launched GOtv during Kenya’s digital migration. He claimed the idea was to create a cheaper TV option for ordinary Kenyans—people he called “mama mboga”—since DStv was too expensive.
“MultiChoice runs DStv in Kenya through a partnership with KBC,” he explained. “But for GOtv, they created a new business targeting the mass market.” He added that GOtv, funded entirely by MultiChoice Africa, needed a local partner.
Kenya’s laws required 20% local ownership. But for almost 10 years, the group kept getting waivers from the Ministry of ICT and the Communications Authority. That changed in 2021.
According to Isaboke, regulators gave MultiChoice a final warning: no more waivers. That’s when they urgently looked for a Kenyan to step in.
By then, Isaboke had left his job at MultiChoice in late 2020 and moved into private business. He claimed that during that time, the company approached him with an offer to buy shares.
Inside the Ksh 5.2 Million Deal
Isaboke said he negotiated with MultiChoice partners in what he called an “arm’s-length” business deal. He agreed to buy in—under the condition that he help the group meet regulatory demands for local ownership. He claimed there was nothing shady about it.
Isaboke paid Ksh 5.2 million for his portion. According to official documents (CR12), the company’s total setup value was about Ksh 17 million.
The PS nominee insisted this was a clean transaction and not a political favor. He stressed that other countries—like Nigeria, Uganda, and Ghana—also have similar arrangements where locals partner with MultiChoice.
“This was not unique to me or to Kenya,” he told the committee. “It was standard business.”
Conflict of Interest or Strategic Timing?
But critics aren’t buying it. Stephen Isaboke got those shares just months after leaving a top position at the very same company. And now he’s being handed a senior government job overseeing the same industry.
That raises serious questions. Is this about representing Kenyans—or protecting corporate interests? To quiet the noise, Isaboke told the committee he formally resigned as a GOtv director after Ruto nominated him.
He says he has no ties to the company anymore. But even that isn’t enough to calm the storm. “If approved,” he said, “I’m willing to review my position regarding the shareholding.” Yet the damage may already be done.
