Politics and policy
President Uhuru Kenyatta inspects a recruits parade during a pass-out at
the GSU Training School in Embakasi, Nairobi. PHOTO | FILE
By BRIAN WASUNA, bwasuna@ke.nationmedia.com
In Summary
- Former President’s son to pocket Sh100 million for ‘offering services’ to owners of Ruaraka plot.
Former President Mwai Kibaki’s son Jimmy is among
beneficiaries of a Sh2.4 billion payout that the government made for the
controversial 37.4-acre General Service Unit (GSU) land in Nairobi’s
Ruaraka.
City tycoon Francis Mburu, who won the payout in a
protracted court battle with the government, has now revealed that Jimmy
was entitled to Sh100 million of the total amount “for services
rendered” to his company, Afrison Export Import Limited.
Mr Mburu was to split some Sh400 million the
government had paid him as instalment among Mr Kibaki (Sh100 million),
Almasi Limited (Sh165 million), and a Mr F M Mulwa (Sh70 million).
The payment was to be made through two law firms —
Harit Sheth Advocates and Mahmoud & Gitau Advocates — he hired in
2013 to oversee the settlements.
Harit Seth was to receive the Sh400 million from
the government then hand it over to Mahmoud & Gitau for onward
transmission to Mr Kibaki, Mr Mulwa and Almasi Limited.
A fight, however, ensued among the three parties,
scuttling the planned disbursement of the funds and seeing the matter
back to court.
Mr Mburu accuses Mahmoud & Gitau Advocates of
fraud for attempting to pay people not included in his instructions. The
Treasury was to release the funds to Mr Mburu in July.
Details of the payments have emerged in suit papers
that Mr Mburu filed in court in July seeking to stop Harit Sheth
Advocates from paying out any money to Mahmoud & Gitau Advocates.
Mr Mburu has sued the two law firms through Afrison Export & Import Limited — a company he wholly owns.
The businessman, however, holds that his biggest
discontent is with Mahmoud & Gitau Advocates, which he claims wanted
to sneak unauthorised individuals into the list of beneficiaries. Mr
Mburu has not, however, named the said persons in court.
“In terms of the said undertaking, Mahmoud &
Gitau Advocates were supposed to pay Mr Kibaki Sh100 million, Mr Mulwa
Sh70 million and Almasi Limited Sh165 million,” Mr Mburu says, adding
that he had within the month of June 2015 made numerous attempts to
prevail upon the defendants to stick to his earlier instructions when
executing the assignment but none of them had responded.
Mr Mburu did not disclose in the proceedings what
services Mr Kibaki and the other beneficiaries offered his firm or
whether the services were related to the land battle.
The High Court has quashed the instructions Mr
Mburu gave to the lawyers after finding that the letter with the
instructions was vague and could not be said to be legally binding.
Justice Francis Gikonyo ruled that the instructions
issued to Harit Sheth in June 2013 were too vague and ordered the
payout stopped until a more descriptive set of instructions are issued.
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