Plans to merge top telecos Telkom Kenya and Airtel will now proceed after A High Court decision to rule out a letter questioning the sale of the former’s properties.
According to a judgment delivered by High Court Judge Jairus Ngaa, a plan by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to recover property already sold or stop those on sale was illegal.
According to Telkom, the Communications Authority (CA) and the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) refused to okay the merger, until the EACC cleared the .
“It follows that to the extent that the respondent purported or attempted to recover public property or prohibit its sale through a letter, its decision is ultra vires. In the language of judicial review, its decision can be said to be unlawful because it is tainted by all or either of the grounds of illegality, irrationality and procedural impropriety,” the judge said.
EACC had earlier established that the process of privatization of Telkom Kenya was above board and that there was no evidence of impropriety or culpability of the public officials involved in the process.
Court documents revealed that Telkom had moved to court to have the letter by EACC withdrawn on February 26, last year. The letter sought a list of properties it had sold and recall or suspend any more sales pending conclusion of investigations it was conducting on the company.
