Ex-Chief Justice Willy Mutunga Slams Safaricom, Demands Severe Action for Rogue Tactics

Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga has called for urgent accountability from Safaricom, Kenya’s telecommunications giant, accusing the company of engaging in rogue practices and orchestrating an assault on press freedom and civil society.

In a scathing opinion piece published by The Elephant, Mutunga alleges that Safaricom has resorted to intimidation tactics, including legal threats and advertising boycotts, to silence critics following a damning exposé by the Daily Nation last October.

The controversy erupted after the Nation published an investigation on October 29, 2024, revealing Safaricom’s alleged collaboration with Kenyan police to predictively identify suspects using artificial intelligence developed by its contractor, Neural Technologies.

The report claimed that Safaricom provided remote access to customer data, which was then used by paramilitary units and police “hit squads,” such as the Recce Squad, to track and “take down” targets.

The investigation also accused the company of obstructing justice in cases of enforced disappearances by refusing to cooperate with inquiries.

Safaricom’s response has drawn widespread condemnation. According to Mutunga, the telecom giant retaliated by canceling all advertising revenue to the Nation Media Group, a move that sparked outrage from Kenyan senators, civil society, and even then U.S. Ambassador to Kenya, Meg Whitman.

The company also issued legal threats to the Nation, demanding the retraction of the report, an apology, and compensation. The threats extended to individual British, French, and Kenyan journalists involved in the investigation.

“They sent a threatening legal letter to bully and harass the newspaper into deleting its report,” Mutunga wrote, describing the actions as part of a broader strategy known as SLAPP—strategic litigation against public participation—commonly used by corporations to stifle criticism.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) and Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI), the latter chaired by Mutunga, also received similar legal warnings from Safaricom after publicly supporting the Nation’s findings.

The Civic Freedoms Forum (CFF), a coalition of human rights organizations, has labeled Safaricom’s behavior “brazen attempts to silence public interest journalism.”

Adding to the pressure, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) issued a statement condemning Safaricom’s tactics and highlighting a coordinated smear campaign against the Nation and its journalists.

Meanwhile, Safaricom lodged a complaint with the Media Council of Kenya, which Mutunga dismissed as “laughable” and a distraction from the serious allegations.

Mutunga emphasized the gravity of the situation, noting that Safaricom’s near-monopoly over Kenya’s telecom market amplifies the impact of its actions

“The question of data is not just a matter of privacy; it is a matter of life and death,” he quoted Senator Okiyah Omtatah as saying, underscoring the potential consequences of the company’s collaboration with law enforcement.

The former Chief Justice urged Kenyans to rally behind a robust civil society movement to demand transparency from Safaricom.

He warned that if local efforts fail, the fight should escalate to the United Kingdom, where Safaricom’s parent company, Vodafone, is headquartered.

“If it doesn’t open a transparent investigation into its subsidiary and make wholesale changes, then it has no place operating here,” Mutunga asserted.

Safaricom, which brands itself as a “responsible corporate entity” upholding the “highest standards of integrity,” has yet to directly address the allegations of data misuse or its alleged role in frustrating justice.

The Nation has stood by its reporting, earning praise from Mutunga for defending public-interest journalism, a cornerstone of Kenya’s democracy.

As the standoff continues, Mutunga called on foreign corporations operating in Kenya to respect the country’s transformative constitution and Bill of Rights.

“When corporate entities wax lyrical about the rule of law and democracy, their practices must follow suit,” he wrote.

“In targeting journalists and civil society, Safaricom’s rhetoric has been exposed for what it is: perfidy, hypocrisy, double standards, and bullying.”

With mounting pressure from civil society, international watchdogs, and the public, the telecom giant faces a critical test of its accountability—and Kenya’s resolve to protect its democratic values.