Concerned about bad press about his company Bidco and its management, CEO Vimal Shah has writen to Kenyans on Twitter, the home for corporate bashing, explaining out issues. Read the article below
Dear Kenyans on Twitter,
You have probably heard and seen a lot about Bidco and myself on your timelines over the last few weeks. Let me clear things up.
NONE OF IT IS TRUE OR FACTUAL. ACTUALLY, IT’S GIBBERISH.
I have become the target of a deliberate SMEAR Campaign by a certain clique of individuals who will apparently go to extraordinary lengths to besmirch my name and that of Bidco.
These matters are in court and we have already obtained gag orders that are being blatantly ignored but we believe in the Kenyan judicial system and we are hopeful that justice and the truth shall prevail. In the meantime the nonsense will keep coming as people get nervous and I ask you to ignore it. I certainly have so far and will continue to do so.
Bidco is a Kenyan company and a family of 6,000 employees across East Africa and their loved ones and dependents; they do not deserve their reputation being dragged through the mud; they deserve respect and I salute them. In addition Bidco has a proud ecosystem of suppliers and customers in the value chain that impacts more than 100,000 people directly and indirectly who also work hard to meet their needs and advance their dreams.
Our palm oil project in Uganda is a Public Private Partnership with Oil Palm Growers-1700 plus – on Kalangala Island and the Ugandan Government. The Government leased the land for the growing of palm to the project. We were not involved in any land transactions in Kalangala.
The project is doing well and bearing good fruits which are being processed daily and helping Uganda become self-sufficient in vegetable oil production.
Bidco is at a wonderful place right now. We are celebrating our 30th year and as the Bidco family we are proud of what we have achieved and where we are going. We are proud of the products we make; we are proud of what we do and how we do it and are proud to play our part in driving Kenya forward.
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Our people have spent a lifetime building a business with integrity and positivity. We have adopted and are certified for World Class Quality Standards: ISO 9001.2008, Environmental Management Standards ISO 14000, Occupational & Health Standards OHSAS ISO 18000, ISO 22000 and our products are also certified by KEBS and HALAL. In addition we are signatories to the UN Global Compact.
We deploy the best technology available and hire the most talented people in order to earn the trust of the Kenyan people and consumers. And we are a Kaizen/lean management practicing organisation.
We stand by the life we have lived and we definitely stand by the work of our hands. Bidco Africa is an open book. Any genuine individual with questions is welcome for answers.
We struggle to understand how people who employ exactly zero Kenyans have become experts on how to lead business. (Proxy accounts do not count as jobs.)
The Bidco journey is still in progress. We are always arriving – we never arrive. We believe there is ALWAYS a better way and there is always room for improvement and welcome constructive criticism but we will not let anyone tear down what we have built.
If anyone has any issues we have due processes both internally and externally including Union and legal mechanisms to resolve the same. We will stick to that system. So celebrate this 30 year milestone with us. Celebrate Kenyan entrepreneurship and Kenyan ingenuity. Celebrate Made in Kenya.
Kenya is a superstar in this region – a shining star – and we are proud to say we are a small part of that in our own way and we intend to make this country even better as we move forward creating value adding jobs along the journey.
The greatness of our country Kenya will rise from working and building together and creating more jobs for our youth and next generation. We need to celebrate Kenya today.
Sincerely,
Vimal.
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