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Post Reply: High Court Petitioned to Block Proposed Sale of Government Stake on Safaricom

<blockquote><div class="quotetitle">Quote from <a class="profile-link highlight-moderator" href="https://lawguide.co.ke/understanding-law/legal-forum/profile/lawyer/">Lawyer</a> on January 28, 2026, 3:42 am</div><div id="pl-8773" class="panel-layout">
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<p dir="auto">A High Court petition has been filed to block the proposed sale of the Kenyan government's 15 percent stake in Safaricom PLC, valued at approximately Sh204 billion.</p>
<p dir="auto">On January 27, 2026, political activist Prof. Fredrick Ogola and Tony Gachoka lodged the petition at the Milimani Law Courts in the Constitutional and Human Rights Division of the High Court. The petitioners seek to halt the transaction, arguing that it poses serious risks to national security, data sovereignty, and the broader public interest.</p>
<p dir="auto">The government currently holds a 35 percent stake in Safaricom, Kenya's leading telecommunications company. The proposed deal involves selling 15 percent of that stake, which equates to more than six billion shares, reducing the state's ownership to 20 percent. The sale is directed to Vodacom Group, a foreign-controlled entity. If completed, Vodacom's effective control in Safaricom would rise to about 55 percent, leaving the government with only two board seats.</p>
<p dir="auto">The petitioners contend that Safaricom represents a strategic national asset at the heart of Kenya's telecommunications sector, mobile money services through M-PESA, digital payments, e-commerce, and financial inclusion infrastructure. They warn that transferring majority control to a foreign entity would undermine the country's leverage over critical data infrastructure, mobile money systems, and national security considerations.</p>
<p dir="auto">Key objections center on the process used for the divestiture. The petitioners describe it as opaque, rushed, and non-competitive, with no meaningful public participation. They claim the approach violates constitutional provisions under Articles 1, 10, and 227, which demand transparency, accountability, and public involvement in the management and disposal of public assets.</p>
<p dir="auto">Additional concerns include the alleged undervaluation of the shares. The transaction is based on a price of Sh34 per share, but the petitioners assert that Safaricom's intrinsic value ranges between Sh70 and Sh80 per share. Proceeding at the lower price could result in a potential loss to the country of around Sh250 billion.</p>
<p dir="auto">The petition further accuses the respondents of circumventing established laws. It argues that the deal invokes the Public Private Partnerships Act to bypass the requirements of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act and the Privatisation Act. The petitioners emphasize that parliamentary approval should be mandatory for such a significant divestiture of public assets.</p>
<p dir="auto">Among the respondents named in the case are the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning, the Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communication and the Digital Economy, the Communications Authority of Kenya, the Competition Authority of Kenya, the Attorney General, Safaricom PLC, and Vodacom Group.</p>
<p dir="auto">The petitioners are requesting urgent conservatory orders from the court to restrain all parties from selling, transferring, or otherwise dealing with the government's shares until the petition is heard and determined. They also seek orders compelling full disclosure of valuation reports, transaction advisors, procurement processes, Cabinet approvals, and any agreements with Vodacom. Further relief includes a declaration that Safaricom constitutes strategic national infrastructure that cannot be sold to a foreign entity, along with measures to preserve the status quo.</p>
<p dir="auto">The case highlights growing public and legal scrutiny over the handling of major state assets in Kenya's telecommunications sector.</p>

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