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Kenya airport in chaos, staff strikes against lease to Adani

Published

9 months ago

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Kenya’s aviation union says the deal to lease the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to India’s Adani Group for 30 years is “unlawful.”Kenya’s main international airport in Nairobi was plunged into chaos overnight as its staff went on strike at midnight Wednesday to protest a planned takeover.

Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) came to a complete standstill, AFP reported, adding that management was drafting a statement.

Kenya’s Aviation Workers Union confirmed that they went on strike starting midnight, in a post on social media website X.

Images on social media showed passengers trying to get their luggage while Kenya Airways warned that passengers were likely to face delays and cancellations of some flights, due to the strike.

Why airport staff are against the Adani deal?

Staff at the airport are protesting a plan to lease the airport to India’s Adani Group for 30 years in exchange for $1.8 billion in investment.

Owned by Gautam Adani, the Indian conglomerate has several publicly listed companies in sectors such as airports and ports, power generation and transmission, as well as coal and gas trading.

Adani, the second richest man in India, enjoys close ties with the ruling party including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In a strike notice to Henry Ogoye, acting managing director and CEO of Kenya Airport Authorities, the union said their hand had been forced by the management which failed to heed demands.

Fears of mass layoffs

The union representing airport workers said that in three previous letters, it had demanded “the immediate resignation of the entire Board of Directors for their show of incompetence in presiding over the unlawful intended sale of JKIA to Adani Airport Holdings of India while they should have exercised prudence and accountability as the custodians of this national strategic asset on behalf of Kenyans.”

The union said that the Adani Group intended to lay off the majority of employees and bring in workers from outside of Kenya to work on the project.

Moreover, the few Kenyans who will be retained will likely be forced to accept “inferior terms and conditions of service that suits the Indian firm,” it said.

Freight and passenger fees from the JKIA accounts for more than 5% of Kenya’s GDP.

Kenya’s government has defended the deal as a necessary move to refurbish the airport. However, Kenya’s high court temporarily blocked the proposal on Tuesday to allow time for a judicial review challenging the lease.

mk/kb (AFP, Reuters)

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My sister was married to the late igwe of Isuaniocha, we used to go to Ofala Festival all the time. I Have Igbo In My Family, So You Can’t Intimidate Me—- Sen Oluremi Tinubu( First Lady of Nigeria)

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9 hours ago

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June 10, 2025

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‎Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has sparked conversations nationwide following a bold remark during her interaction with South-East midwives in Enugu which was aired on Channels Television.
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‎While addressing issues about ethnic sentiments and her interactions with various regions, the First Lady declared, “Don’t do shakara for me here I have Igbo in my family, so you can’t intimidate me.”
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‎The statement was made in a light-hearted yet firm tone, as she discussed issues of national unity, inclusion, and her personal connection to Nigeria’s diverse ethnic groups.
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‎According to her, her family ties cut across ethnic lines, reinforcing her belief in the need for national cohesion and mutual respect.
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‎“I have always advocated for a united Nigeria, We may speak different languages, but we are one people. My family reflects that diversity, so no one can play the ethnic card with me.”
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BREAKING: First Lady Oluremi Tinubu Honored with Chieftaincy Title in Enugu state.(Ugosimba 1 of Enugu)

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10 hours ago

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June 10, 2025

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Just a month after her husband President Tinubu was given a chieftaincy title in Anambra as “Dike Simba 1 of Anambra” Her Excelency the wife of the president has been given her own chieftaincy title in Enugu.

Her husband, President Tinubu is Dike Simba 1 of Anambra
Now she, First lady Tinubu is Ugo Simba 1 of Enugu

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Sallah: Imam blames insecurity on disobedience to teachings of Qur’an, Hadiths

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4 days ago

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June 7, 2025

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Muslim cleric, Sheikh Umar Faruk Haruna has blamed insecurity in the country on the non-adherence to the teachings of the Holy Qur’an by the Muslims Ummah.

Haruna, who is the Deputy Chief Imam of the Ekenwa campus of the University of Benin, UNIBEN, made the remarks while speaking with newsmen shortly the two rakkah prayers to mark the 2025 Eid-el-Kabir.

The Imam who said Islamic religion is built on the fear of Allah, peace and love, noted that the ills in society cannot be eradicated unless the Muslims retrace their steps and go back to the teachings of the Qur’an and the Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad.

He said insecurity and other social vices have taken over all the nooks and crannies of the country because the Muslim faithful have decided to legislate for themselves instead of following and obeying Allah’s commands

“The message is simple. The essence of Islam is to have the fear of Allah, love and peace. If we the Muslim can actually behave as the Qur’an direct us and the Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad there will be no insecurity.

“It is because we have put the Qur’an and the Sunnahs of the Prophet aside, and we have decided to legislate for ourselves that is why we are having all these pockets of insecurity here and there.

“This cannot stop and will never stop until we retrace ourselves by actually believing what the Quran says and the Hadiths of the Holy Prophet Muhammad.

“The issue of insecurity you are seeing in Nigeria today is that you cannot wash the Muslims’ hands off of it. We are participating.

“Is it kidnapping, banditry, the Boko Haram. You can see today that where all these things started, we can even call them the Islamic states. But unfortunately these are supposed to be the last places where all these kinds of things are supposed to have taken place, but today here we are.

“The only solution we have is to go back to the Qur’an. It is for us to go back to the teachings of the Prophet. This is the only way we can have peace. As long as we have continued to disobey God. You can see that we have even started getting our rewards here on earth before getting to the day of judgment”, he said.

He, however, advised the Muslim Ummah worldwide to hold on to the principles and tenets of Islam, noting that the Eid-el-Kabir celebration is purely Islamic and not to perpetuate immorality, illegality and those things that are  completely forbidden in the sight of Allah.

On the sacrificial animals, the chief Imam admonished the Ummah that their sacrifice can only be accepted by Allah if acquired through legal means.

“We say even the ram we are struggling to get, you cannot strangulate, inflict pains or hardship on another person for you to get money to buy one.

“You cannot go and sin or cause pain on another person because you want to buy a ram.

“We say getting a ram is through your legal earnings, that is the only way Allah will reward you for it”, he added.

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