The High Court in Marsabit has temporarily suspended the implementation of a government directive requiring all foreign visitors entering Kenya to obtain travel health insurance with a minimum cover of US$50,000 (about Sh6.4 million), pending the determination of a constitutional petition. Justice Francis Rayola Olel issued conservatory orders on August 21, halting the enforcement of Gazette Notice No. 11492, which introduced the mandatory insurance requirement under the Social Health Insurance Act, 2023. The orders followed a petition filed by Edow Issack Mohammed and Zhulekha Mohamed Edin, who argue that the directive is unconstitutional, procedurally flawed and exceeds the legal powers…
Author: Pinnah Mokeira
The Political Parties Disputes Tribunal (PPDT) has certified as urgent a dispute challenging the Registrar of Political Parties’ rejection of the proposed Linda Mwananchi Movement (LMM). The case was set for hearing on August 25, 2026. The complaint was filed by Suba South MP Michael Caroli Omondi, former Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo, and Pauline Njoki Njoroge, who accuse the Registrar of issuing contradictory decisions over the reservation of the party name. According to court documents, the applicants first applied to reserve the name on June 4, under Section 48(1) of the Political Parties Act. The Registrar declined…
A 12-year-old boy is battling severe electrical burns after he was allegedly electrocuted by loose, hanging power lines in Donholm Phase 8, Nairobi. AA sustained burns covering approximately 35 per cent of his body in the August 9, incident, with his family accusing the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) of negligence. The boy was rushed to Nairobi West Hospital, where he remains under treatment for what his lawyers have described as severe third-degree electrical burns. Through their lawyers, Masaki, Omayio & Gathu Advocates, the family has issued a seven-day demand to Kenya Power, seeking compensation and an immediate assumption…
The Supreme Court has temporarily stopped the recovery of Sh1.5 billion paid as compensation for land hosting Ruaraka High School and Drive-In Primary School, granting Huelands Limited and Afrison Export Import Limited a reprieve. The apex court on August 18, certified as urgent an application challenging a Court of Appeal decision that declared the compensation unlawful. A full bench led by Chief Justice Martha Koome issued interim orders barring the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the National Land Commission from taking steps to recover the money pending determination of the application. The court…
Nairobi lawyer Harrison Kinyanjui has demanded Sh50 million in damages from businessman Michael Makarina who allegedly linked him to a Sh25.4 million bribery scheme involving former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. Through his lawyers, Mbichire & Co. Advocates, Kinyanjui has issued a demand notice to Makarina, who operates the X account @michaelmakarina under the name “Hon. Michael Makarina”. The dispute arose from a post published on August 17, in which Makarina shared an old video showing a retired judge being arrested by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) following a complaint lodged by Raphael Tuju. However, the caption accompanying the video…
The Senate has moved to the Court of Appeal to challenge a High Court decision that found flaws in the impeachment proceedings against former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. The appeal was filed by the Speaker of the Senate Amason Kingi and the Senate, challenging a judgment delivered on June 8, by a three-judge bench comprising Justices Eric Ogola, Dr. Fridah Mugambi and Anthony Mrima. The High Court had found that Gachagua’s right to a fair hearing was violated after the Senate declined to grant him an adjournment during the impeachment proceedings. The court subsequently awarded Gachagua Sh50 million in constitutional…
Two companies at the centre of the controversial Ruaraka land dispute have moved to the High Court seeking to stop the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) from recovering Sh1.5 billion pending the determination of their appeal before the Supreme Court. Afrison Export Import Limited and Huelands Limited have filed an urgent application before the High Court’s Judicial Review Division, challenging the EACC’s decision to commence recovery of the funds paid to them over the acquisition of land occupied by Ruaraka High School and Drive-In Primary School. The companies want the court to grant them leave to institute judicial review proceedings…
A Nairobi court has acquitted nine of 11 suspects in a long-running cyber fraud case in which prosecutors alleged a syndicate hacked the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and fraudulently obtained about Sh3.9 billion. Milimani Chief Magistrate Carolyne Nyaguthii Mugo, in a ruling delivered on August 11, found that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against most of the accused persons. The decision brings a major setback to the prosecution in a case that began in 2017 and involved allegations of sophisticated cyberattacks targeting KRA’s tax systems. The suspects had faced charges including conspiracy to commit a…
A man moved to the High Court seeking to stop a directive by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) requiring importers to transfer domestic cargo to designated Container Freight Stations (CFSs). The petitioner Henry Namiti Shitanda filed an urgent petition challenging the directive, arguing that it unlawfully restricts importers’ freedom to choose where their goods are cleared and was introduced without adequate public participation or stakeholder consultation. Shitanda claimed the directive issued by the two State agencies in early August 2026 was developed and implemented without transparency, alleging that it violates constitutional principles of accountability and…
The High Court in Malindi has ruled that Kenya’s next presidential election ought to be held on August 11, 2026, declaring that the Constitution requires the poll to be conducted on the second Tuesday of August in the fifth year following the previous general election. In a judgment delivered on Friday, Lady Justice Mugure Thande found that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission’s (IEBC) plan to conduct the next General Election in August 2027 is inconsistent with Article 136(2)(a) of the Constitution. Despite declaring the intended 2027 presidential election date unconstitutional, the judge suspended the declaration of invalidity until after…
The High Court has dismissed applications by several suppliers seeking to lift orders freezing the payment of more than Sh6.1 billion in pending bills owed by the National Youth Service (NYS). In a ruling delivered virtually on July 31, 2026, Justice Rose Ougo upheld interim orders issued on December 8, 2025, restraining NYS from paying six companies a total of Sh6,167,797,655 pending the hearing and determination of a suit filed by the anti-graft agency. The EACC maintained that the claims are founded on fraudulent procurement documents for goods that were never supplied. The 1st, 5th and 6th defendants had asked…
A Milimani Commercial Magistrate’s Court has ordered East African Breweries Plc (EABL) to deposit Sh10 million as security pending the hearing and determination of a commercial dispute filed by digital marketing firm Steizon Limited, a company associated with media personality and influencer Willis Wayne Raburu. In a ruling delivered on July 23, 2026 Senior Principal Magistrate Anne Nyoike directed EABL, the second defendant in the suit, to deposit the amount into a joint interest-earning account operated by advocates representing both parties within the period set by the court. The dispute arises from an alleged oral agreement under which Steizon Limited…
Rally driver Maxine Wahome was Tuesday acquitted of the murder of her late boyfriend, Asad Khan, after the High Court found that the prosecution had failed to present sufficient evidence linking her to his death. Justice Lilian Mutende, in a ruling delivered on Tuesday, found that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against Wahome, meaning she would not be required to be placed on her defence. Wahome had been charged with the murder of Khan, who died after sustaining serious injuries at Preston Apartments along Oloitoktok Road in Nairobi on December 12, 2022. In reaching her…
Chief Justice Martha Koome has suspended Kangema Senior Principal Magistrate Martin Kinyua Mutegi following his arrest over allegations of soliciting and receiving a Sh150,000 bribe. The magistrate was arrested on Tuesday alongside Principal Probation Officer Julius Irungu Njogu during an operation conducted by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in Kangema town. According to the EACC, the two allegedly received the money from a businessman who had been convicted and was awaiting sentencing. The commission alleged that the bribe was intended to influence the preparation of a probation report and secure a non-custodial sentence for the businessman, who had been…
A protected prosecution witness on Monday testified before the High Court that he was instructed by former Central Police Station Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Samson Talaam and another officer identified only as “AA” to format the station’s Digital Video Recorder (DVR), erasing CCTV footage recorded around the time Albert Omondi Ojwang died in police custody. The witness, identified in court only as Dan to protect his identity, was the second prosecution witness in the murder trial facing Talaam and five co-accused. Earlier, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), while outlining its case, told the court it would…