The whistleblower who uncovered the controversial plan by the government to lease out the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Adani Holdings Limited has claimed that his life is in danger.
Nelson Amenya, the man who exposed the deal that has since sparked opposition and protests across the country, on Wednesday said that the expose had put him under threats.
Speaking during an interview with KTN, the 30-year-old student at HEC Paris in France, said that he has been receiving threats from Indian bloggers and unknown people in Kenya.
He added that officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations have also been looking for him, with some even warning him of facing charges over the issue.
“I don’t think I’m really safe. I’ve received a lot of threats since the day I exposed this deal from Indian bloggers as well as in Kenya. The DCI try to intimidate us by sending trumped up charges,” he said.
Amenya, who is currently pursuing a Masters in Business Administration at HEC Paris in France, has been linked to the Adani expose after he began revealing the documents containing the details of the controversial deal.
In the deal, the Indian conglomerate is expected to upgrade JKIA, including the construction of a second runway and a new passenger terminal under a 30-year build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract.
The deal is expected to cost about $1.85 billion (Sh242 billion), but has since received heavy opposition from Kenyans, leading to the Tuesday and Wednesday strike by airport workers.
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- Court temporarily stops Adani JKIA deal in LSK suit
- India’s Adani steps up push for 30-year JKIA takeover
The Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU) on Tuesday night downed their tools in protest of the controversial plan, but later called off the strike after talks with the government.
Amenya, in his interview, said that Adani wants to have sole control of JKIA in order to use it as collateral for taking loans.
He argued that the contract will allow Adani to terminate the deal if the government fails to protect their business interests.
The government will also be responsible for ensuring Adani receives an annual concessional fee of Sh50 million paid quarterly in advance.
“Adani was asking to have the title deed of Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) in their name and the reason they gave is that they will want to use it as collateral for taking loans,” Amenya said.
“The revenue from the SPB (Special Purpose Bonds) in Kenya goes to the SPB in Abu Dhabi and then goes to the Indian company, Adani.
“So this one alone raised a red flag, why can’t they do business directly to India from Kenya? Why does it go through Dubai? If you follow the news, UAE is a big tax haven and the way they launder money is through SPBs,” he added.
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