Court declares sale of Safaricom shares to Vodacom unconstitutional

President William Ruto's government faced a significant setback as the High Court declared the sale of 15% of Safaricom shares to Vodacom unconstitutional. In their detailed ruling on September 15, 2026, delivered by Justice Francis Gikonyo, Justice Roseline Aburili, and Tabitha Wanyama, the judges found the transaction to be invalid and null and void.

They determined that the sale was carried out without sufficient public participation as required by the Constitution of Kenya. The court criticized the process, stating it was marred with obscurities, misrepresentations, and concealment of crucial information about the transaction's nature and impact. The three-judge bench concluded that the divestiture was undertaken and approved without the necessary public engagement mandated by the Constitution's articles 10 and 118.

Consequently, the decision to sell 15% of the government's shares in Safaricom PLC was deemed invalid and automatically void. The court further ordered that the shares already transferred to Vodacom be returned to the government, emphasizing that it has no legal authority to sell them.