The High Court has thrown out a petition seeking to bar Safaricom from introducing the expiry of loyalty points, popularly known as Bonga points.
The giant telco warned that subscribers would lose their unredeemed loyalty points after three years. It effected the new terms and conditions on January 1, 2023, for unredeemed Bonga points accumulated before December 31, 2019.
Safaricom argued the move was a business decision to encourage redemption of Boga points and unlock the underlying revenue totaling Sh4.5 billion as of March last year.
But Nakuru-based surgeon Dr Magare Gikenyi moved to the High Court to challenge the expiry of Safaricom Bonga points.
Dr Gikenyi argued that the announcement by Safaricom caught the public unawares and that it just “sprung up from the blues”.
In his petition, the surgeon said Safaricom customers should not be forced to redeem the Sh4.5 billion accrued from being loyal customers using the telco’s services.
“The action of the respondent will lead to, inter alia, loss of public confidence and outright abuse of business dominance to the detriment of many poor Safaricom subscribers in the country,” Dr Gikenyi argued.
“Considering the verse geographical background of Kenya, high illiteracy levels in some parts of the country, lack of internet in some areas, and many other factors, many Kenyans will suffer due to poor administrative action of the respondents,” he added.
Justice Mugure Thande dismissed the petition saying Dr Gikenyi filed it at the last minute. She directed that the application be served upon all parties by Monday, January 16.
Thande further directed the matter to be mentioned for directions on March 6, 2023.
