Treasury CS Ukur Yatani has disclosed that KBC is facing a Ksh43 billion lawsuit filed by Dubai tycoon Ajay Sethi.
Speaking on Wednesday, November 11, CS Yatani stated that the government was liable to pay if it loses the case.
“As the principal owner of all state corporations, the government is the natural underwriter of risk that they face,” he stated, adding that the station is facing lawsuits amounting to Ksh174 billion.
Sethi has sued the state broadcaster over the termination of a contract in which KBC had entered into with his company to run a joint venture that failed to take off.
The businessman is seeking arbitration in London over the termination of the deal which was signed in 2005 between his company and KBC when officials visited Ajman TV which he owned.
After signing the deal he incorporated his company at the British Virgin Islands 9 days later. Sethi, once as vehicle spare parts trader in Kenya is now the Chairman of Channel 2 Group, co-owner of St Lucia Cricket Team and owner of Nelson Mandela Bay Stars a cricket team which plays in the T20 Global League in South Africa.
The two companies were supposed to run a 24-hour sports channel but KBC terminated the contract in 2009.
The joint venture was supposed to end 2017 after earning a profit of Ksh52.4 billion.
According to the suit papers, the state broadcaster was expected to provide some of the equipment but which was found to be inadequate.
Sethi’s company sought funds to purchase a new transmitter, staff, billboards and hired an advertising company.
KBC cited programming and poor financial performance but the tycoon claims that KBC had a weak signal.
The state broadcaster argued that the businessman misrepresented himself that he had the required capabilities, competence expertise and financial resources to run the station.
