Mudavadi faulted on port privatisation

By NGUMBAO KITHI and PATRICK BEJA

Port stakeholders and politicians in Coast Province reacted angrily to suggestions by Amani presidential candidate Musalia Mudavadi that State corporations should be sold to raise money to fund social programmes.

And a Muslim lobby group — the Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya (CIPK), which supports Uhuru Kenyatta’s presidential campaign — opposed the inclusion of discussions on the charges facing him at the International Criminal Court claiming statements issued during Monday’s presidential debate deeply hurt Jubilee supporters.

On Monday, Mr Mudavadi said State corporations and parastatals like the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) should be privatised to raise money to fund Government investment in programmes like education and health.

Reacting swiftly, stakeholders said they had fought for years against Government plans to privatise the port because it was a profit making and strategic parastatal for Kenya and East Africa region. The 6,000-member Dock Workers Union (DWU) warned that any plans to privatise Mombasa port would be met with a crippling strike that would lead to lose of jobs.

DWU Secretary General Simon Sang said privatisation of the Mombasa port was not viable since the port of Singapore was public but more efficient than some of the privatised ports. He noted that in 2005, KPA, which manages the port of Mombasa, successfully borrowed Sh5.8 billion from local commercial banks to equip the port because it has a healthy balance sheet.

Cut down job S

“Privatising the port of Mombasa will not necessarily make it efficient. It will only facilitate the transfer of wealth to a few individuals including foreign investors and cut down job opportunities in the country.

“Singapore port management model is the way to go for Kenya,” Sang said. He said the Constitution places much responsibility in the operation of the port on the county government and that the viable way for the national government should be to facilitate the establishment of a free port at Dongo Kundu area in Mombasa to create business and job opportunities and avoid disposing off Mombasa port.

During the presidential debate on Monday night, Mudavadi, a former Transport minister, had suggested that his Government would raise revenues to fund operations by selling parastatals like KPA and KAA.

Mr George Olang’o, the interim general secretary of Kenya Ports Authority Management Workers Union, said Mombasa port was not dependent on Government and was even remitting revenue to the State.