Editor's Review

Murkomen noted that some generators powering terminals 1A and 1E failed to start immediately despite having been acquired recently.

Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen on Sunday night December 10, made a formal request to the National Police Service (NPS) over a power outage at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

In a statement, CS Murkomen directed the police to investigate a possible case of sabotage at the international airport aimed at painting his ministry in a bad light.

Murkomen noted that some generators powering terminals 1A and 1E failed to start immediately despite having been acquired recently.

Moreover, Murkomen noted that the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) had done proper testing before installing them. However, on Sunday, they failed to power up the terminals leaving passengers stranded.

Blackout at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Sunday December 10, 2023. PHOTO | COURTESY

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"Considering the frequency of the power disruption, and taking into account the fact that JKIA is a facility of strategic national importance, we are making a formal request to the National Police Service to investigate possible acts of sabotage and coverup,

" Murkomen stated.

He made the statement after driving to JKIA during the blackout accompanied by other top officials in his Ministry.

His statement was supported by the KAA which assured Kenyans that investigations had been launched to identify the root cause of generator failure.

Nonetheless, Murkomen directed the KAA board to continue implementing reforms proposed by a technical committee which was formed to help fix JKIA and other airports in the country.

"In the meantime, the cleanup of the mess at JKIA continues. The KAA Board is under strict instructions to carry on with the reform agenda and the management to implement, as directed, the report of the technical committee which I recently constituted," Murkomen reiterated.

Murkomen's statement came amidst uproar from Kenyans calling for President William Ruto to take action against the CS over the frequent power outages affecting the international airport.

Kenya Power on its side, attributed the outage to a system disturbance but deployed a team of technicians who restored supply in major parts of the country.