MOMBASA, Kenya—Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has warned that President William Ruto’s approach of ordering companies accused of failing to deliver sufficient economic benefits to leave Kenya could undermine investor confidence and hurt job creation.
Sifuna said disputes between governments and private companies were inevitable, but should be handled through established legal and dispute-resolution mechanisms rather than presidential directives ordering businesses to shut down or leave the country.
The senator was reacting to Ruto’s order for Tata Chemicals Magadi to leave Kenya, after the President accused the company of exploiting the country’s natural resources without creating enough jobs or establishing industries in Kajiado County.
Sifuna linked the President’s latest directive to his “mambo ni matatu” phrase, which Ruto has used when warning individuals and entities accused of wrongdoing that they face three choices—jail, leaving the country or death.
“When companies make decisions about where to put their investments, the dispute resolution regime in place is key because disputes arise all the time. The ‘mambo matatu, pack and go’ approach, where the President can just shut down your business, is very bad for investment and consequently job creation,” Sifuna said.
Ruto ordered Tata Chemicals Magadi to leave during a public address in Oloiren, Kajiado County, on Thursday, September 3, accusing the company of holding a soda ash mining licence for about a century without creating sufficient employment or developing industries in the area.
“I told them to pack up their things and leave. Let them go. These people come here, take our resources and transport them to India and other countries,” Ruto said.
The President said the government would seek another company to take over the operations and require the new investor to establish a major glass manufacturing plant and another chemical manufacturing factory.
Ruto argued that Kenya’s natural resources should generate greater economic benefits for the country and the communities where they are extracted.
Tata Chemicals Magadi is owned by Tata Chemicals Limited, part of India’s Tata Group. The company produces soda ash, also known as sodium carbonate, together with other salt and industrial mineral products from trona deposits at Lake Magadi.
Sifuna, however, said the government’s approach could send the wrong signal to both existing and prospective investors, particularly where disputes over investment obligations, licences or economic benefits have not been resolved through established legal processes.
He said the Linda Mwananchi political movement, in which he is involved, would seek to strengthen adherence to the Constitution and the rule of law if it forms the next government after the 2027 General Election.
“It is why we in Linda Mwananchi insist on a return to the rule of law. That’s our plan,” he said.
