Cyprian Nyakundi has published staff accounts accusing Safaricom Chief Human Resources Officer Florence Nyokabi of running a department marked by unfair treatment, questionable dismissals and a hostile working environment.
According to the insiders who spoke to him, the company now faces at least 40 employment cases in court, with potential liabilities estimated at nearly KSh 500 million if it loses the disputes over illegal and wrongful terminations.
Those figures, point to a serious failure of basic personnel management. Multiple employment and labour relations cases involving Safaricom are a matter of public record.
In one recent matter, a former senior executive was awarded roughly KSh 5.6 million after the court found his termination unlawful.
In another high-profile case, Nicholas Kamunyu, the former Chief Channels Officer, was dismissed while related court proceedings were ongoing; Nyokabi was among the senior officers named in a subsequent contempt application over how the company handled the process.
She has also sworn affidavits on behalf of the company in related litigation. These are not isolated complaints. They show a pattern of decisions that end up before judges rather than being resolved fairly inside the organisation.
Staff further allege that Nyokabi has openly claimed the backing of “Peter,” understood to be CEO Peter Ndegwa. That claim, explains why many employees believe she faces no real accountability for decisions that destroy livelihoods.
When the person in charge of human resources operates with the impression of untouchability, ordinary workers have little reason to expect fair process.
The result is a growing list of court files and rising legal costs that shareholders ultimately fund.
Safaricom is a public company. Its board and investors have a right to know the exact number of active employment cases, the total amount already spent defending them, and the potential exposure still outstanding.
They also have a right to know who authorised the decisions that produced those cases and whether the current leadership of the human resources function is fit for purpose.
An HR department whose decisions repeatedly land the company in court is not protecting the business. It is creating liabilities.
The accounts shared with Nyakundi paint a clear picture: under Florence Nyokabi, employee relations at Safaricom have become a source of risk rather than stability.
Until the board demands clear answers and takes responsibility for the cost of these disputes, that risk will continue.
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