United Alternative government Slams Infrastructure Fund Bill and Safaricom Sale Plan, Warns of Threat to Kenya’s Strategic Assets

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By Irene 
Wiper Patriotic Front Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka has led the United Alternative Government in mounting strong opposition against the proposed National Infrastructure Fund Bill, 2026 and Sessional Paper No. 3 of 2025 seeking partial divestiture of the Government’s stake in Safaricom PLC. In a detailed press statement issued Thursday, the opposition coalition described the two policy instruments as a “co-ordinated assault” on Kenya’s constitutional public finance framework and strategic national assets.


Kalonzo argued that the National Infrastructure Fund Bill (National Assembly Bill No. 1 of 2026) is constitutionally defective and redundant, insisting that Kenya’s infrastructure challenges stem from governance failures rather than institutional gaps. He cited Article 206 of the Constitution, warning that the proposed fund risks operating outside the Consolidated Fund and parliamentary appropriation safeguards. 

The coalition further demanded that Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi be summoned to Parliament to reconcile alleged inconsistencies between his representations to MPs and a sworn affidavit reportedly filed at the Milimani High Court regarding the legal status of the Sh5 trillion fund vehicle.

On the proposal to partially divest government shares in Safaricom, Kalonzo cautioned against what he termed “selling Kenya’s crown jewels for fiscal pain relief.” He emphasized that Safaricom is not merely a telecommunications firm but a critical national infrastructure asset underpinning digital payments through M-PESA and key government platforms such as eCitizen and the National Integrated Identity Management System. He noted that in FY2024, the company declared dividends amounting to KSh 48.08 billion, a significant portion of which accrued to the government, and argued that offloading shares would erode long-term revenue streams while exposing strategic assets to potential national security risks.

The opposition also cited concerns over recent government asset transactions, referencing the Kenya Pipeline Company IPO as an example of what it described as weak transparency, questionable pricing, and low retail investor confidence. Kalonzo called for a full parliamentary post-mortem of the IPO process and demanded suspension of further asset monetisation exercises until a comprehensive National Asset Management Policy is approved by Parliament.

The United Alternative Government is now urging the National Assembly to reject the Infrastructure Fund Bill in its entirety, withdraw the Safaricom divestiture Sessional Paper, conduct independent constitutional and strategic reviews, and ensure full public participation before advancing any measures affecting national assets. Kalonzo maintained that Kenya’s crisis is not a shortage of institutions but a failure of governance, calling on Parliament to uphold constitutional integrity and protect the long-term economic interests of citizens.

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