The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) has ordered listed marketing and communications conglomerate WPP Scangroup to pay former CEO Bharat Thakrar Ksh 1.95 mn, in the latest in a long-running saga following Thakrar’s ouster in 2021.
- Thakrar had filed the complaint against WPP Scangroup PLC, WPP PLC, and Control Risks Group.
- Thakrar and Satyabrata Das, who served as CFO, were suspended by the company in February 2021 over “”allegations of gross misconduct and possible offences in their capacity as senior executives and employees of the Company.”
- WPP became Scangroup’s largest shareholder in 2008 after acquiring 60.6 million new shares in the listed advertising firm for KSh. 1.3bn.
“The 1st and 2nd Respondents are…ordered to give the Complainant access to his personal data related to his employment as CEO & Director…within 7 days,” the ODPC said in the ruling signed by Data Commissioner Immaculate Kassait.
In March 2024, Thakrar sued WPP Scangroup in Kenya and the United Kingdom, alleging, among other things, that the company had conspired “to injure his status and reputation as a founder, shareholder, director and CEO…” Thakrar is the second largest shareholder in the company after WPP Group, which owns slightly over half of the issued share capital through two subsidiaries.
In a press statement published on the company’s website, WPP Scangroup CEO Patricia Ithau said the listed company “disagrees with the Determination and are considering an appeal.”
The listed firm operates in 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and has majority-owned offices in Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.
