Nominated Principal Secretary (PS) for the State Department for Broadcasting and Telecommunications, Stephen Isaboke, was forced to explain how he acquired shares in MultiChoice Africa Group, one of Africa’s leading media and entertainment companies.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Friday, April 4, Isaboke acknowledged that he has been a shareholder in the GOtv business.
GOtv is one of the two MultiChoice Group businesses operating in Kenya and was a new venture that emerged with digitalization.
“MultiChoice Kenya runs the DStv branch, and this business is a partnership between the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation and MultiChoice Group,” he said.
“What happened is that the group saw an opportunity during the digital migration to launch a digital brand targeting the mass market—almost like what you’d call mama mboga—because DStv is a premium product, and not everyone can afford it,” he stated.
Stephen Isaboke Explains How He Acquired Shares in MultiChoice
He added, “To ensure that more Kenyans could access digital services, they introduced a new product segment: terrestrial TV which led to the launch of GOtv. “
Stephen Isaboke said that GOtv was established as a MultiChoice Africa Group business—fully funded and set up by MultiChoice Africa.
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He added that in Kenya, the company preferred to partner with KBC. For nearly a decade, there were negotiations and correspondences—on record—between MultiChoice Africa and KBC regarding KBC’s acquisition of these shares.
“As you know, these entities are regulated, and previous regulations required an operator to have a minimum of 20% local shareholding,” he stated.
The PS nominee further explained that from GOtv’s establishment in 2012 until early 2021, MultiChoice repeatedly obtained waivers from the Ministry of ICT and the Communications Authority while finalizing the shareholding structure.
He explained that he acquired the shares after MultiChoice was given a final warning, stating that there would be no further waivers as all negotiation options had been exhausted.
“They notified KBC that we had been given a final notice. Our lines were at stake. Then they started looking for a way forward. As I mentioned earlier, I personally left the group at the end of 2020,” he said.
“As I transitioned into business, an opportunity arose, and we engaged in mutual negotiations with MultiChoice partners. They proposed that, as a Kenyan, if I agreed to take up the shares, I would comply with certain conditions that would help fulfill their requirements.”
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Isaboke said they underwent rigorous negotiations at arm’s length, and eventually, sometime in 2021, and finalized a shareholder agreement.
Ruto Nominee Paid Ksh 5.2 Million to Acquire the Shares
He mentioned that the agreement took into account the group’s nominal setup value. According to the CR12 attached to the memorandum, the total value was approximately Ksh 17 million.
“I paid my portion of Ksh 5.2 million to acquire the shares at nominal value. The rest of the business operations have continued under our chair,” he explained.
Isaboke emphasized that there was nothing irregular about his acquisition of the shares.
He noted that it was a legitimate business transaction for a company that had long sought to finalize the shareholding until he eventually made an offer, and they mutually agreed to proceed.
“And just to clarify, this is not unique to Kenya. Similar arrangements exist in Uganda, Tanzania, Nigeria, and Ghana, where local individuals are granted or negotiate for shares with MultiChoice and become local partners,” he added.
The nominated PS stated that following his recent nomination by President William Ruto, he took the step to formally notify all relevant parties of his resignation as a director of GOtv Kenya.
“It is now on record with the company secretary and the other partners. And indeed, if approved and successful, I am willing, Chair, and my commitment is to review my entire position regarding the shareholding in the entity,” he added.
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