Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka has opposed the planned privatization of the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC), arguing that the parastatal ranks among the most profitable.
This comes as President William Ruto’s administration moves the plan to partly sell KPC into an advanced stage. According to the Privatisation Commission, the privatization of KPC aims to unlock the parastatal’s full potential and reduce the country’s appetite for loans.
Kalonzo Musyoka revealed that the sale of the parastatal will become a major 2027 campaign agenda item. A month ago, Kalonzo directed Makueni Senator Daniel Maanzo to challenge the planned privatization of KPC in court. The former vice presiden maintains that President Ruto’s administration has no justification for selling the state corporation.
“We are opposed to the sale of KPC. There is no point in selling a profit-making parastatal. It is a major source of money to the Exchequer. We are sending a strong warning to those eyeing KPC. We shall revoke the transaction once we assume office,” Kalonzo said.
He spoke during a stopover at Thange Village in Makueni County, the epicenter of an oil spill in 2015. A puncture in a section of a KPC pipeline caused the oil spill, which resulted in an unknown quantity of oil spilling into a seasonal river and farmland.
Four months ago, the Environment and Land Court sitting in Makueni County ordered KPC to pay Ksh2.1 billion to some 3,075 residents of Thange region whom it established the 2015 oil spill had affected.
The court also ordered KPC to pay Ksh900 million to the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) for restoring the polluted Thange environment. More than 100 residents have succumbed to liver and kidney complications, which medical reports have linked to exposure to hydrocarbons found in petroleum. Many more Thange residents have received diagnoses of diabetes and liver diseases.
“Cartels determined to siphon oil from the KPC pipeline deliberately caused the spill that poisoned the land, water and health of Thange residents, yet justice remains delayed. The Environment and Land Court ordered compensation, but KPC still denies responsibility. This is not just pollution. It is a crime against a community,” Kalonzo said.
The 2027 presidential hopeful called for swift and decisive action to address the oil spill mess, saying: “Thange deserves justice, clean water and accountability, not excuses.”
The post ‘We’ll Revoke the Deal’: Kalonzo Vows to Stop KPC Privatization If Elected in 2027 appeared first on Bossnana.
