<p dir="ltr">This is a debate that Kenyans should not take lightly. For any law that comes into force, the citizens must be consulted widely.<br>
Here are a few questions I've been asking myself :<br>
1. Are we fighting proxy wars? Who wants Safaricom dead?<br>
2. Is there any citizen in his right mind who wants to see Safaricom go the way of Telkom, Kenya Airways, Mumias... Remember these shell companies were once the pride of the nation.<br>
3. Airtel is the largest mobile operator in South Asia and the third largest in the world with a 303 million subscriber base. Safaricom subscriber base worldwide is less than 10% of that.<br>
4. Airtel has a total equity of US$26 billion with revenue of about $15 billion compared to Safaricom's around $2 billion with $1.4 billion revenue. Are these two companies competing at the same level? <br>
5. As of year 2012, Orange had a revenue of €43.5 billion and equity of €24.3 billion and total assets of €90 billion. Are these companies worth us Sacrifice our toddler Safaricom? <br>
5. Would Safaricom enjoy the same rights as Airtel in say, India or France? Would Safaricom get a licence in the first place in these markets? <br>
6. We have seen how multinationals steal from Kenyans by evading taxes through transfer pricing, declaring false losses, etc. Why would we want to kill our crown jewel in support of thugs?<br>
7. Capital flight: where do profits of these multinationals go as compared to those of Safaricom? </p>
<p dir="ltr">Have a thoughtful day.</p>