A lobby group has given the management of Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) a seven-day ultimatum to provide details that led to the questionable allocation of its prime Kipevu land in Mombasa to a private entity to construct a private Container Freight Service (CFS), or face sanctions.
The Genesis for Human Rights Commission (GHRC) programme Director Caleb Ng’wena, in the June 9, 2026 letter to KPA Managing Director William Ruto, faulted the management over the requisite approvals of the private facility as he sought the intervention of Parliament.
“We will seek punitive orders against KPA and personal liability against the accounting officer for breach of constitutional provisions alongside orders to halt the illegal construction and cancel the fraudulent tender,” says Mr Ng’wena in the letter.
Documents before the National Assembly Committee on Transport and Infrastructure and in our possession, show that KPA, a State agency, hived off its land in what Mr Ng’wena termed as irregular, and allocated to a company associated with the high flying political figure for the construction of the CFS.
The documents show that the company went on to secure an exclusive single-sourced tender to handle 20 per cent of all South Sudan- bound cargo.
“The circumstances surrounding both acquisition of this public land and the awarding of the cargo handling tender raise monumental integrity questions,” says Mr Ng’wena in the June 9, 2026 letter.
To get to the bottom of the matter, Mr Ng’wena wants Captain Ruto compelled to provide certified copies of the lease agreements which includes the formal lease, license or allocation agreement between KPA and the private entity granting access and construction rights over the public land in Kipevu, Mombasa.
He is also demanding a public participation report indicating comprehensive records, minutes and reports demonstrating that public participation was conducted prior to the alienation “of this public asset.”
The company registration details are also crucial for the investigations. This includes the complete ownership structure, CR12 form and beneficial ownership disclosures of the company constructing the CFS.
The others include tender procurement records detailing the procurement method used, the justification for single-sourcing and minutes of the tender evaluation committee regarding the South Sudan cargo contract as well as the formal letter of award, signed contract and Local Purchase Order (LPO) issued to the company.
“Take notice that KPA holds public land and assets in trust for the citizens of Kenya. You are hereby required to fully comply with these demands and furnish our offices with the requested certified documents,” said Mr Ng’wena.
This as he revealed that the construction is going on without the approval of the National Environment Management Authority (Nema), the National Construction Authority (NCA) and the Mombasa County Government.
A signboard detailing the nature of the project and the authorised contractor at the construction site has not been erected contrary to the National Construction Authority Act and its attendant regulations.
According to the NCA site board guide, the signboard must be prominently displayed and must contain the project details specifying the official name of the project and the Land Reference Number (LR No), the client name and the contact details of the developer/ property owner.
Also required is the name and registration details of the NCA-registered contractor handling the execution, full names and addresses of the lead architect, structural engineer and quantity surveyor.
The statutory approvals numbers, which include visible compliance and permit numbers issued by the county government, NCA and Nema are also required to be displayed on the signboard.
According to Mr Ng’wena, “there is absolutely no evidence of public participation, environmental impact assessments or competitive bidding as strictly mandated by the law.”
“This entire transaction reeks of high level influence-peddling, state capture and brazen land grab orchestrated purely due to the CFS owner’s proximity to power,” says Mr Ng’wena.
