Fresh twist as ex-CS Yatani now says Gov't is Telkom Kenya majority shareholder

The probe into the controversial buyout of Telkom Kenya has taken a new twist after former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani revealed that the government is now the majority shareholder.

Yatani, speaking when he appeared before the Parliamentary committee probing the buyout on Wednesday, said that contrary to claims that government paid and did not receive the shares from Helios Limited, all the transfer documents are at the National Treasury.

He went ahead to challenge the current Treasury CS Prof. Njuguna Ndung’u to make public the documents.

“All the original signed, approved documents are in the custody of the National Treasury, it is no longer with Helios because the National Treasury is now the 100 per cent shareholder,” said the former CS.

Yatani told the joint committee that the shareholding status has not been changed at the State law office since the Telkom Kenya board that is supposed to initiate the changes is set to be properly constituted.

“The National Treasury is in possession of the shares certificate, what has not been done has not been done because the board, as directed by National Treasury, did not meet since they did not have a quorum. So the records at the registrar of companies might not have changed,” he said.

Yatani said the payments had been approved following a sitting by the National Security Advisory Council that wanted Telkom to be fully government-owned as it handles critical security installations including office of the President, State House, the Defence headquarters, the National Intelligence Service as well as running the IFMIS portal.

The former Treasury boss also defended the bulk expenditure that was undertaken by the previous administration.

The current Treasury CS Prof. Ndung’u will have the final word on whether he is in possession of the government’s new shareholding of Telkom Kenya.