Mombasa: Judge Fails To Rule On KSh 1.8 Billion Case For The Sixth Time

• Mombasa High Court Judge Olga Sewe had, on the past five occasions, given various reasons she did not rule on the case
• The matter was set for ruling on Wednesday, September 25, but Lady Justice Olga said she was away on official duties
• The case involves KSh 1.8 billion, which the court had initially ruled was illegally paid to a company linked to businessman Mohammed Jaffar

Mombasa – The High Court in Mombasa has, for the sixth time, failed to issue its verdict in a case relating to the payment of KSh 1.8 billion to businessman Mohammed Jaffar.

The Mombasa-based businessman’s company is alleged to have fraudulently received the money as compensation payment for land used for the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project.

Ruling on the matter had been set for Wednesday, September 25, but presiding judge Olga Sewe said she was away on official duties.

The matter will now be coming up in court on October 9 for further directions.

Miritini Free Port fighting for KSh 1.8 billion

In the case, Miritini Free Port, a company linked to the businessman, is seeking orders to set aside earlier orders issued by then-Mombasa High Court judge Erick Ogolla.

Justice Ogolla had ruled that the money was illegally paid to the company and directed that it be refunded.

However, in a spirited fight, four petitioners, through lawyer Gikandi Ngubuini, asked the court to freeze the money paid to Jaffar until the matter is heard and determined.

Petitioners argue that the KSh 1.8 billion was intended for the landowners affected by the SGR project.

They said they were the rightful owners of the land after being resettled in the area by the government from Bombololu to pave the way for the construction of a children’s home.

In 2021, Justice Ogolla, in his judgement, stated that the firm allowed itself to receive compensation from taxpayers for land that NLC had acquired through fraudulent means.

According to the court’s ruling, the state agency approved payment of the said amount of money as compensation, yet it knew that the land in question belonged to squatters. It also noted that the company had illegally acquired the said land.

“NLC was used by the owner of the firm in making the illegal payments,the court can not allow this kind of corruption for rewards to individuals who can bribe their ways to obtain taxpayers money at the expense of genuine needy Kenyans,” he ruled .

The company, however, filed a constitutional review petition against the National Lands Commission.

Compensation for Dongo Kundu Project

Meanwhile, TUKO.co.ke previously reported that the government is set to begin the allocation of KSh 1.4 billion to compensate project affected persons (PAPs) under the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Mombasa and Kwale counties.

The government noted that 1,648 people will be compensated, bringing the share of the allocated money to about KSh 840,000 per person.

Cabinet Secretary for Investments, Trade and Industry, Salim Mvurya, confirmed that the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) has successfully verified and streamlined the list of PAPs.

Proofreading by Mercy Nyambura Guthua, journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke