Kenya Airways management under siege, as MPs pile pressure

Normal house business was suspended on Tuesday afternoon as members of parliament trained their eyes on the financial troubles at Kenya Airwa

Leader of Majority Adan Duale tabled a motion of adjournment giving the legislators ample time to delve on issues troubling the national carrier.

From the ownership structure to management flaws, the debate got heated in what Mr Duale termed as the ‘imminent collapse of the national airline’.

“Kenya Airways has been performing dismally in the last four years. This has resulted in the airline being technically insolvent with a negative equity of Sh36 billion….. This operational mess has been presided over by former and current management of the airline,” Mr Duale charged.

The leader of majority was particularly vexed as he was among the hundreds of passengers stranded in Mombasa on Sunday, as the airline experienced close to a six hour delay on flights.

MPs voiced their disapproval over the running of the airline calling for the sacking of Chief Executive Officer Mbuvi Ngunze as well as the prosecution of former boss Titus Naikuni.

“Naikuni and Ngunze cant runaway from the issues facing KQ. If decisions were made by Naikuni he must be held responsible,” Kiminini MP Chris Wamalwa said.

Kenya Airways announced a historic Sh26.2 billion loss for the full year ended March 2016.

The MPs called for the creation of a special committee to probe the affairs at the airline.

Legislators questioned the ownership structure of Kenya Airways, with particular concern that it was getting a raw deal from its relationship with Dutch carrier KLM.

KLM holds a 26.7 percent stake at the airline while the government is the majority shareholder with 29.3 percent shareholding.

The debate even took a political twist when Mr Duale tried to link the woes at the airline to opposition leader Raila Odinga.