Mtetezi, a grassroots economic justice movement, held its first public participation forum in Riruta/Satellite Ward, bringing together young residents to debate Nairobi’s future governance and the reforms they believe are needed to fix the city’s deepening urban challenges. The meeting marked the beginning of a citizen engagement process by the movement, which says it wants governance reforms to be informed by the lived experiences of ordinary Nairobians rather than political rhetoric. During the forum, participants painted a bleak picture of life in the capital, citing flooding that repeatedly disrupts homes and businesses, unsafe construction practices, frequent building collapses, crippling traffic…
Author: Pinnah Mokeira
The High Court in Kisumu has ordered the Inspector General of Police and the National Police Service to pay Sh38.5 million in compensation to 28 victims of police brutality who were killed, injured, or maimed during anti-government protests in 2023. In a ruling delivered on Wednesday, Justice Alfred Mabeya found that police officers used excessive and unlawful force against civilians who were not participating in the “Azimio maandamano” protests against the high cost of living, which took place between March and July 2023 in Kisumu, Migori, and Ahero. The judgment details harrowing accounts of young Kenyans shot dead while running…
The Court of Appeal has dismissed an application by the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) seeking to suspend a High Court decision that threw out its case against former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko, holding that there was nothing capable of being stayed after the suit had already been dismissed. In a ruling delivered virtually on Wednesday, a three-judge bench comprising Justices Kathurima M’inoti, Chacha Mwita, and Byram Ongaya found that the agency’s request for a stay of execution was legally untenable because the High Court had issued what the judges described as a negative decree. “Be that as it may, it…
Political analyst Harman Bond Manyora was released on a personal bond of Sh2 million after he was charged before a Nairobi court with obtaining Sh516,000 from a businesswoman in a purported Nairobi Hospital tender deal. Manyora was arraigned before Principal Magistrate Paul Mutai on Wednesday March 25 where he denied the charge. According to the charge sheet, between August 15, 2024 and October 30, 2024, in Nairobi County, Manyora is accused of using fraudulent tricks to obtain Sh516,000 from Josphine Luceno Kavulani. The prosecution alleged that the money was paid as consideration to facilitate the award of a tender Number…
The Political Parties Disputes Tribunal directed that the complaint challenging the purported elevation of East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) MP Winnie Odinga to the position of “Nairobi’s number-one party delegate” be served upon the respondents, with the matter set for further directions on March 25. In directions issued on Tuesday, Presiding Member Gad Gathu Kiragu ordered that the Complaint and Notice of Motion application dated March 23, be served upon the respondents, who are at liberty to file their responses. The tribunal has listed the matter for directions on March 25, at 2:30 pm. The matter was filed by Evans…
Former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju moved to the High Court seeking to block his arrest and detention. In an urgent application filed in Nairobi, Tuju accused the Inspector General of Police, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions of attempting to arbitrarily arrest and detain him without formal charges. According to the court documents, Tuju is currently admitted at Karen Hospital, where he remains under police guard despite not being arraigned in court. Through an affidavit sworn by co-applicant Louiza Korros, the former minister claims he voluntarily presented himself at Karen Police Station…
A petition was filed at the High Court in Kerugoya seeking to quash the recent re-election of Francis Atwoli as Secretary-General of COTU-K, alleging procedural irregularities and violations of constitutional principles. The case, lodged by the Centre for Public Policy and Research, challenges the validity of the March 14, 2026, polls held at the Tom Mboya Labour College in Kisumu. The petitioner sued the Cabinet Secretary for Labour and Social Protection, the Registrar of Trade Unions, COTU-K, and the Attorney General, with several trade unions and officials listed as interested parties. According to court documents, the NGO argued that the…
A Nairobi court allowed the withdrawal of criminal charges against three directors of Kenya Hospital Association Limited, the entity that operates Nairobi Hospital. Principal Magistrate Peter Mutai ruled in favour of the prosecution’s application to withdraw the charges under Section 87(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC). The three Barcley Mogere Onyambu, Magdalene Koki Muthoka, and John Nyiro Mwero had been charged under the Companies Act for allegedly failing to lodge the company’s financial statements for multiple years, including 2022, 2023, and 2024, with the Registrar of Companies. State counsel Nora Otieno told the court that the Office of the…
The High Court Thursday ruled that a person’s registered mobile phone number forms part of their “digital identity” and is entitled to constitutional protection. In a judgment delivered virtually on Thursday, Justice Lawrence Mugambi held that the routine deactivation and reassignment of mobile phone numbers after 90 days of inactivity, without regard to the reason for non-use, poses a real threat to the right to privacy under Article 31 of the Constitution. The case was brought by two prisoners, including Erastus Ngura Odhiambo, who argued that inmates involuntarily lose access to their registered phone numbers while serving prison sentences because…
High Court Judge Josephine Wayua Wambua Mong’are obtained conservatory orders barring the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) from taking any investigative action against her pending the hearing of a petition challenging the agency’s move. Justice Mong’are, a judge in the Commercial and Tax Division at Milimani, moved to court under certificate of urgency after the EACC summoned her to appear at the Integrity Centre on Thursday for what it described as an interview and statement recording in connection with alleged corruption and abuse of office. In court documents, the judge argued that the summons were unconstitutional, procedurally improper and calculated…
The High Court in Nairobi suspended the National Transport and Safety Authority’s (NTSA) new automated instant fines system pending hearing and determination of a petition filed by Sharia mtaani. In orders issued, Justice Bahati Mwamuye granted conservatory orders restraining NTSA, its Director-General, and KCB Bank Kenya joined as an interested party from “issuing, generating, demanding or enforcing instant or automated traffic penalties produced through algorithmic or other automated decision-making systems.” The orders were issued after an urgent petition was filed by public benefit organisation Sheria Mtaani na Shadrack Wambui, challenging a public notice issued by NTSA on March 9, 2026…
A Nairobi-based printing and packaging company is facing a legal battle after nine former employees filed separate lawsuits alleging systematic underpayment, denial of leave, abrupt termination, and exposure to hazardous working conditions without protective gear. The employees, who worked at Precise Printpack Limited between 2020 and 2025, have lodged claims at the Milimani Law Court in Nairobi seeking damages totaling hundreds of thousands of shillings. The claimants worked in various roles including machine operators, general workers, and production assistants. Their periods of employment range from eight months to over four years, with some having joined the company as early as…
A Nairobi resident petitioned the High Court to declare the National Transport and Safety Authority’s (NTSA) newly launched Instant Traffic Fines Management System unconstitutional, arguing that it unlawfully usurps the powers of the judiciary and violates the right to a fair trial. In the petition, Kennedy Maingi Mutwiri, through the firm Jama Munene Kyalo Advocates LLP, sued NTSA and the Attorney General. Simultaneously, the petitioner filed a Notice of Motion seeking urgent conservatory orders to suspend the system’s operation pending the hearing and determination of the main petition. The suit comes just a day after NTSA announced the system was…
Sections 22 and 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, 2018 are unconstitutional, the Court of Appeal of Kenya ruled. In a judgment delivered on March 6, 2026, a three-judge bench comprising Justices Patrick Kiage, Aggrey Muchelule and William Ouko found that the two provisions which criminalised false publications and publication of false information were overly broad and likely to net innocent persons. The judges held that the provisions were “so broad, wide and untargeted, akin to unguided missiles,” and could easily capture innocent citizens, including individuals who share or forward information online without verifying its accuracy. “These provisions…
The Court of Appeal dismissed an attempt by the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) to block the release of Sh537 million held in accounts linked to former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko. In a ruling delivered on March 4, a three-judge bench comprising Justices Kathurima M’inoti, Chacha Mwita, and Bryam Ongaya held that it lacked the jurisdiction to grant a stay of execution against what it described as a “negative order” issued by the High Court. The ARA, through lawyer Esther Muchiri, had moved to the appellate court seeking to stay a judgment by Justice Sifuna, who had previously dismissed the agency’s…