The Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi.
Sentencing proceedings are set to begin next month over Kajiado’s long-running and growing fine owed to a hotelier since 2009.
Last Wednesday, the Judicial Review division of the High Court in Nairobi issued a show-cause notice to the county administration to appear before it on April 20 “to mitigate and furnish reasons why they should not be committed to civil jail”.
Kajiado was to pay Sh1.2 billion in 2009 but has yet to clear it. In the spotlight is its chief officer for Finance and Economic Planning, who was found guilty of contempt in 2019 but was given a year to have the contempt purged. At the time of the guilty finding, the holder of the office was Mr Morris Putita Kaaka. A number of reshuffles have since occurred.
The Amboseli Lodge in September 2023. It is one of the hospitality investments that was owned by the Kilimanjaro Safari Club before disputes arose in 2007, leading to disruption of business and eventual closure.
The summons to the county, seen by the Nation, say that the contemnors are required to attend virtual court proceedings “upon which the court will determine whether they should attend a physical court session”.
The issuance of the summons followed a March 9 ruling by Justice Roselyne Aburili. In a tersely-worded decision, she recalled the one-year grace period given to the chief officer to get himself out of the contempt-of-court condemnation.
Ms Aburili’s ruling followed an application filed in 2025, in which the hotelier – Kilimanjaro Safari Club – sought to have various officials of the Kajiado administration found guilty of contempt for refusing to clear the fine that has been ballooning for 17 years. Kilimanjaro Safari Club, founded by the late Rajnikant Desai, has been operating a lodge and safari camp in the Amboseli National Park within Kajiado County since the late 1960s.
The hotelier’s row with the county began in January 2006 when the predecessor of Kajiado County – the Olkejuado County Council – ejected it from one of the lodges it was operating. Prior, the county council had allowed a rival business to operate within a two-mile radius of one lodge, contrary to their agreement.
The county council’s actions led to arbitration proceedings that ended in it being ordered to pay damages that amounted to just over Sh300 million at the time. A significant portion of the Sh300 million was to be paid in US dollars and the fine would accrue interest till the time of full settlement.
The order from the arbitration was later adopted by the High Court. A gradual depreciation of the shilling against the dollar, coupled with the accumulation of interest, has seen the amount quadruple.
“This court must rise in an unyielding defence of its authority, shunning any contemptuous disregard for its orders as an affront to the rule of law and the foundation of justice. The [county has] had all the years to settle the decree,” Justice Aburili said.
Quarter pay
While arguing the application before Ms Aburili ruled on it, Kilimanjaro said the outstanding debt stood at Sh1,175,657,188 by January 21. The court was told that in 2021, the two parties reached a compromise settlement where it was agreed that Sh392 million would be paid, including other considerations, to Kilimanjaro to mark the entire fine settled.
However, the court heard that Kajiado paid only Sh100 million and did not pay its second instalment of Sh292 million. As such, Kilimanjaro argued, the amount owed had reset to Sh1.2 billion due to the breach of the agreement. In its defence, the county said it had failed to clear the Sh292 million balance because of factors beyond its control.
Its lawyers noted that the matter needed to be put to public participation, adding that it was to factor in the debt into the 2026-27 budget. The judge was not impressed by Kajiado’s sluggishness on the matter. She rejected the county’s pleas to slot in the payment in its next budget cycle.
“I reiterate that court orders are sacrosanct unless stayed or set aside and must never be unduly disobeyed or toyed around with as if they are mere requests or optional directives. To allow parties to continue disobeying and frustrating the enforcement of valid court orders, such as what the respondents are praying for in their proposal to settle the decree in the next financial year, 17 years after the decree was issued, would be inviting this court to take part in a brazen assault on the rule of law and advance a contemptuous erosion of the court’s authority, striking at the heart of justice.”
Regarding Kajiado’s explanation that it did not budget for the amount in this financial year, she noted, “The court cannot entertain such a hollow excuse, which offends not only reason but also respect for judicial authority. I say so because this was not a debt that arose recently. The matter has been pending in court since 2009 when the award was made.
The debt could have been factored in, in all those years that have gone by.”
Responding to the invitation to cite county officials for contempt, the judge chose to revisit the 2019 ruling that had found the Finance chief officer guilty upon a sentence suspended by a year.
“It is clear that there already exists a valid finding of contempt of court against the respondents. This court finds that there is no necessity to make another finding on the issues of contempt and duplicate already existing orders as the same will have no legal value,” she said, adding that the next step would be sentencing proceedings.
“The chronology of events in this file’s history depicts the conduct of the respondents from the onset as reprehensible in the view of this court and a demonstration of lack of good faith and faithfulness in resolving the issue of non-settlement of the decree.”
High Court judge Roselyne Aburili.
She said Kajiado’s pledges that it would now pay up were “mere promises, which have been broken for the past 17 years and cannot be believed”.
“The runaway and buck-passing in this matter must stop with this court. No longer can this court entertain flimsy excuses on non-compliance by the respondents who have no good faith or conscience at all. The decree holder continues to carry a barren decree,” Justice Aburili stated.
“I find that Kajiado County cannot continue to play cat-and-mouse with the court and Kilimanjaro Safari Club by taking parties round in circles and giving old/stale and fresh excuses each time they are called upon to settle the decree.”
“Accordingly, I hereby recall the post-contempt-orders process which was suspended by this court and I proceed to issue a notice to show cause for the county officials cited to appear before this court to mitigate and furnish reasons why they should not be committed to civil jail,” the judge noted.
Follow our WhatsApp channel for breaking news updates and more stories like this.
