Former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju got a temporary relief after the High Court allowed him to file an appeal against a ruling that paved the way for the auction of his prime Karen properties in a multi-billion shilling debt dispute.
Lady Justice Josephine Wayua Mongare certified the Notice of Motion application dated March 11, as urgent and granted Tuju and his company Dari Limited leave to appeal the March 9, 2026 ruling that struck out their amended plaint.
However, the judge declined to halt the execution of the earlier ruling.
Instead, she directed that the application be served upon the respondents and mentioned before the Presiding Judge of the Commercial and Tax Division on March 17, for further directions.
“In the interim, the applicants are granted leave to appeal the ruling of 9/3/2026 in terms of Prayers B,” Justice Mongare ruled.
Tuju’s lawyer, Grado Victor Mabachi had argued that auctioneers could proceed with the sale of the disputed properties before the intended appeal is heard, rendering any subsequent legal challenge nugatory.
The application alleges that the respondents are “now at liberty to proceed with auctioning, transfer and alienation” of the properties known as L.R. No. 1055/165 (Tamarind Karen and Dari Business Park along Ngong Road) and L.R. No. 11320/3 (Entim Sidai Wellness Sanctuary in Karen).
“If this application is not heard urgently on priority basis, the intended appeal will be rendered nugatory should the respondents proceed with the auctioning, transfer and alienation of the aforementioned properties,” Mabachi submitted.
The urgent application follows a ruling delivered on March 9, in which Justice Mongare struck out the amended plaint dated April 25, 2025, and vacated interim orders issued on October 28, 2024, that had barred the respondents from advertising, selling, or transferring the properties.
In that ruling, the judge ruled that the applicants were essentially seeking to “re-hear an injunction already denied, re-open a debt already adjudicated internationally and recognized domestically, and re-litigate the enforceability of security over properties already subject to multiple court orders”.
The dispute stems from a loan facility agreement signed on April 10, 2015, between Dari Limited and the East African Development Bank (EADB).
In June 2019, a commercial court in the United Kingdom issued a summary judgment ordering repayment of more than $15 million (approximately Sh1.9 billion), which was subsequently recognized and registered by the Kenyan High Court in 2020.
The Court of Appeal upheld that decision in April 2023, and the Supreme Court declined to issue conservatory orders staying the decision later that same year.
In their fresh application, Tuju and Dari Limited argue that the intended appeal raises substantial legal issues, including that the court failed to determine a pending contempt application dated January 22, 2025, concerning alleged violations of earlier court orders.
The applicants further contend that the court did not address the fate of two suits which had been consolidated with the main suit via the amended plaint filed with the court’s express leave .
“The plaintiffs/applicants filed a contempt application against the defendants/respondents… which this Honourable Court referenced in its ruling of 9th March 2026 but did not address nor make any findings or determinations on,” the supporting affidavit sworn by Raphael Tuju states .
The respondents in the case include Knight Frank Valuers Limited, East African Development Bank, Bank of Africa, and Joseph Mungai Gikonyo trading as Garam Investment Auctioneers, among others.
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