A Nairobi court on Monday declined to review the Sh500,000 cash bail imposed on Atheists in Kenya founder Harrison Mumia, directing that a pre-bail report be filed before any decision is made. Mumia appeared before Chief Magistrate Rose Ndombi for pre-trial directions, during which he also asked the court to compel the prosecution to supply a statement from President William Ruto, whom he said is the principal complainant in the case. Through his lawyer, Suyianka Lempaa, Mumia argued that the charge sheet lists only two witnesses despite the alleged victim being the Head of State. “Your Honour, we have seen…
Author: Pinnah Mokeira
The Court of Appeal blocked the sentencing of the Chief Executive Officer of Mater Misericordiae Hospital, who was found guilty of contempt of court in an employment dispute. In a ruling delivered, a three-judge bench comprising Justices Francis Tuiyott, Pauline Nyamweya and Joel Ngugi granted a temporary stay, preventing the CEO from appearing before the lower court for mitigation and a potential jail sentence, which was scheduled for this Friday, January 16, 2026. The appellate court restrained the ELRC from proceeding with mitigation, sentencing or any other penal consequences arising from the contempt finding against the hospital, which is operated…
The Court of Appeal has suspended the execution of a Sh485.8 million judgement issued by the High Court in a family dispute involving the management of a company linked to the estate of the late Samuel Maina Gatonga. In a ruling delivered on January 16, 2026 a three-judge bench comprising Justices Lydia Achode, Aggrey Muchelule and George Odunga granted a stay of execution pending the hearing and determination of an intended appeal by three brothers, John Kaguma Maina, Charles Kanyuga and Stanley Kariuki Maina. The applicants had moved to the appellate court challenging a High Court decision by Justice Mongare…
The Court of Appeal granted the Commissioner of Customs and Border Control a stay of execution suspending a High Court order that required the payment of Sh21 million in value-added tax (VAT) refunds to Animix Limited, pending the determination of an intended appeal. In a ruling delivered on January 16, 2026 a three-judge bench comprising Justices Mumbi Ngugi, Francis Tuiyott and Joel Ngugi held that the appeal raised arguable legal questions and that releasing the funds before the appeal is heard could have far-reaching implications for public revenue. The dispute stems from a tax classification disagreement that began before the…
The Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal by a former employee of the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company (NCWSC) who was sacked for his role in the loss of Sh1.2 million in company funds. Stephen Ndolo, a former Cashier Verification Supervisor, had challenged his 2013 dismissal, arguing that his termination was unfair and that the company’s cash management system was flawed. However, in a judgment delivered on January 16, 2026 a three-judge bench comprising Justices Francis Tuiyott, Aggrey Muchelule, and George Vincent Odunga found that Ndolo’s failure to account for the cash constituted gross misconduct and justified his summary…
A Milimani Commercial Courts ordered lawyer Ignatius Muhatia to pay Sh1.5 million in damages to Harriet Chiggai, the Special Advisor on Women’s Rights to the President, for defamatory statements made in a lawyers’ WhatsApp group. Chief Magistrate Daniel Kanyinke Ole Keiwua, in a judgment delivered virtually on January 13, 2026, found that Muhatia’s comment accusing Chiggai of “trading my body for positions” was false, malicious, and calculated to lower her reputation before over 1,000 members of the “Western Jurists Forum.” The dispute originated on March 22, 2023, during a heated online debate about First Lady Rachel Ruto’s adoption of 200…
The Embu High Court Thursday ordered the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to surrender all polling materials from the Mbeere North parliamentary election for secure custody within the court premises. The order was issued after the court set aside 10 hearing days in March, 2026 for petitions challenging the outcome of the August 2025 election. During a pre-trial conference held on Thursday, the presiding judge Richard Mwongo said the key issues for determination are the eligibility of the declared winner, Njeru Leo Wa Muthende, and whether the final results reflected the genuine will of the electorate. The consolidated petitions…
Lugari Member of Parliament Nabii Daraja Nabwera has sued Kakamega Deputy Governor Ayub Angatia Savula over alleged defamatory remarks touching on his health status and performance as a legislator. In a petition filed in Court, Nabwera accused the Deputy Governor of making false, malicious and defamatory statements during a burial ceremony held on November 25, 2025, within Lugari Constituency. According to court documents, Savula allegedly told mourners that schools in Lugari were failing because the MP was “sick and living with HIV.” Nabwera said the remarks were untrue, insensitive and a violation of his constitutional rights to dignity, privacy and…
Lugari MP Nabii Daraja Nabwera Wednesday threatened to sue Kakamega Deputy Governor Ayub Angatia Savula over what he terms as defamatory and malicious statements allegedly made during a burial ceremony in November last year. In a demand letter dated January 14, 2026, Nabwera’s lawyer Danstan Omari accused Savula of making “vicious, inaccurate, derogatory and defamatory” remarks during the burial of the late Munyuki Secondary School principal Simon Isiaho Shange at Ludodo village, Likuyani Sub-County. The letter claimed that the Deputy Governor went as far as allegedly airing the legislator’s HIV status without proof, an act the MP says gravely injured…
A Milimani Chief Magistrate’s Court allowed the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) to detain two police officers for 14 days to complete investigations into the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Shukri Adan Ibrahim Issaka. The officers, Godwin Mjomba and Patrick Mutunga Titus, will be held at Capitol Hill Police Station. IPOA had sought 21 days, but principal magistrate Caroline Mugo granted them 14 days. According to IPOA Senior Assistant Director of Investigations Abdirahman Jibril, the incident occurred in the early hours of January 11, 2026, near the MCC area within the Villa Police Station jurisdiction. He said Shukri Adan was with…
More than 20 Congolese medical doctors working in Kenya filed an application at the High Court seeking orders to compel the government to renew their practising licences and work permits. They argued that the decision to block them from practice is unlawful and discriminatory. The doctors, who have lived and worked in Kenya for over a decade, accused the Ministry of Health and the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) of arbitrarily declining to renew their licences following a directive issued on January 7, 2026. In court papers, the applicants through their lawyer Danstan Omari argued that the Cabinet…
The High Court ruled that the 60-day timeline for determining cases under the Small Claims Court Act does not automatically strip a court of jurisdiction. In a judgment delivered on December 1, 2025, lady Justice Asenath Ongeri dismissed an appeal by Dennis Wachenje Maghanga and upheld a ruling of the Nairobi Small Claims Court reinstating a claim filed by Abeid Walid Alias. The court found that although Section 34 of the Small Claims Court Act directs that matters be determined within 60 days, the timeline is not a “self-executing guillotine” that extinguishes jurisdiction once it lapses, particularly where delays are…
A Nairobi court deferred sentencing after a man pleaded guilty to stealing railway equipment from the Kenya Railways Central Workshop. Chief Magistrate Dolphina Alego ordered that a pre-sentence report be prepared and presented to the court on January 8, 2026. The accused, Josphat Kamau Chege, admitted that on January 4, 2026, at about 3:00 pm, he stole three radiator grills used in a locomotive train, valued at Sh40,566, property of the Kenya Railways Corporation. According to the prosecution, railway security officers were on routine patrol within the central workshop area near Gate A and Bliss Medical Centre when they heard…
A Milimani court released the Atheists president Harrison Nyende Mumia accused of publishing false information about President William Ruto on a bond of Sh1 million. Chief Magistrate Dolphina Alego on Monday granted bond to Harrison Nyende Mumia, also known as Robinson Kipruto Ngetich, after he pleaded not guilty to four counts of false publication. He was also granted a cash bail of Sh500,000 and ordered to surrender his passport. The prosecution alleged that on December 30, 2025, while at an unknown location within Kenya, Mumia used a pseudo Facebook account under the username Robinson Kipruto Ngetich to post images of…
The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) said it will appeal a High Court judgment which halted disciplinary proceedings before the commission. In a statement issued on December 24, the JSC said it had taken note of the judgment, which relates to the discharge of its constitutional mandate under Articles 168, 171 and 172 of the Constitution. The Commission said, as an independent constitutional body established under Article 171, it is expressly mandated to safeguard and advance judicial independence and accountability. It argues that Article 168 of the Constitution vests it with the responsibility to receive, consider and, where constitutional thresholds are…