An anti-corruption court has summoned lawyers who previously acted for Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa and her six co-accused to appear before it on Wednesday.
Chief Magistrate Edna Nyaloti summoned lawyers Jared Magolo, Danstan Omari, Shadrack Wambui and Titus Kirui even as prosecutors raised concerns about abuse of the court process.
The summons followed prosecutors’ objection to an application for adjournment by lawyer Duncan Osoro, who was instructed by Ms Jumwa and her co-accused to take over from the four lawyers.
The court asked Mr Osoro to find Mr Magolo in order to be given documents to be relied on during the hearing of the case and which had been supplied to the four lawyers by prosecutors.
When the court session resumed after a brief break, Mr Osoro told the magistrate that he was yet to receive the documents and thus was seeking to have the case adjourned.
“I am yet to receive the documents, hence my prayer for adjournment. I need more time. If I don’t get the documents from the lawyers I will contact the prosecution at my own cost,” Mr Osoro said.
This prompted prosecutors to inform the court that Mr Osoro had been seen conversing with the accused and their previous lawyers outside the courtroom.
“I saw my colleague Mr Osoro with the previous advocates. They were talking outside the courtroom. This court must stop abuse of its process,” said prosecutor Alex Akula.
Prosecutors said some of the previous lawyers representing the accused had also at one time refused to take documents from prosecutors saying they did not receive any instructions from their clients.
“This morning, the same circus is beginning. For how long? The newly appointed lawyer will have the documents. This case belongs to the accused, documents are available, we shall give them,” said Mr Akula.
The prosecutors’ submissions were also backed by an investigation officer, who took to the witness stand and swore that he saw the previous lawyers with Mr Osoro conversing outside the courtroom.
Mr Osoro told the court that he was talking to the previous lawyers ‘begging’ them to give him the documents that had been previously supplied by prosecutors.
He said he wondered why as a newly instructed lawyer he was not being given sufficient time to prepare for the case yet the prosecution has had its documents for almost two years.
Mr Osoro, who said he would not be able to proceed with the hearing of the case on Wednesday, described being given a day to prepare for the hearing of the case as an injustice.
At one point, the magistrate wondered whether what was happening was a ploy to delay the case or if she was the problem.
Ms Nyaloti noted that defence lawyers had been causing adjournments and that despite the previous lawyers opting out of the case, she could see them peeping inside the courtroom when the accused were pleading to the charges afresh.
“There comes a time when the court takes control,” said Ms Nyaloti before issuing summons to the four lawyers previously representing Ms Jumwa and her co-accused to appear before her.
Ms Jumwa is accused of conspiracy to commit fraud through payment of Sh19 million to Multiserve contractors in respect to tender number MLD/NG-CDF/01/2017/2018 of the National Government Malindi Constituency Development Fund.
The MP’s co accused are Wachu Omar, Kennedy Otieno, Bernard Riba, Sophia Saidi, Margaret Kalume, Robert Katana and Multiserve contractors.
The offence is alleged to have been committed between May 14 and October 12, 2018 in Malindi sub-county, Kilifi County.
Ms Jumwa is also charged with conflict of interest, acquisition of proceeds of crime and money laundering
The court also heard that between May 25 and May 29, 2018 at Malindi NG-CDF offices, Mr Otieno, Mr Riba, Ms Saidi and Ms Kalume, as members of the tender evaluation committee for the Malindi NG-CDF, in tender number MLD/NG-CDF/01/2017/2018 jointly and wilfully failed to comply with procurement laws.
Mr Omar, a fund account manager at NG-CDF offices Malindi, is also charged with two counts of wilful failure to comply with procurement laws.
Another accused, Mr Katana, is charged with three counts of forgery, uttering a forged document and fraudulent acquisition of public property.
