Several court cases seeking the removal of Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) Managing Director Philip Mainga have been filed in Nairobi and Kisumu, with several withdrawn after directions were issued and fresh petitions lodged.
The cases, filed before the High Court and the Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC), raise questions about Mr Mainga’s continued tenure and whether he has exceeded the statutory limit.
The latest petition, filed by Centre for Litigation Trust, asks the court to determine whether Mr Mainga is lawfully in office and to bar him from exercising the powers of managing director if his second term has expired.
The petition was filed by executive director Julius Ogogoh, who says it is a public-interest case. The organisation also wants Kenya Railways to disclose documents supporting his continued tenure, including his appointment letter, renewal instrument, board resolutions, approvals and legal opinions relied on for retaining him.
Kenya Railways, its board chairperson, Mr Mainga and the Attorney-General are respondents, while the Public Service Commission (PSC) is an interested party. The case awaits directions.
Kenya Railways Corporation Managing Director Philip Mainga at Nairobi Terminus on Tuesday, June 10, 2025 during the 8th anniversary celebration of the Madaraka Express.
Photo credit: Dennis Onsongo | Nation
The first challenge was filed in February by activist Francis Owino at the High Court in Kisumu against Mr Mainga, Kenya Railways and the National Land Commission.
Justice Alfred Mabeya directed on March 2 that the application be served immediately and responses filed before a hearing scheduled for March 4. When the matter came up for mention on April 30, Mr Owino withdrew the case and the file was closed.
A similar petition was later filed in Nairobi by Wahome Mucunu, who argued that Mr Mainga’s tenure should have ended in 2024.
Justice David Mburu directed that the Attorney-General, the Cabinet Secretary for Roads and Transport, Mr Mainga, the Kenya Railways board and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission be served. The petitioner later withdrew the case, formally closed on July 28.
Structures demolished by the Kenya Railways Corporation along Geoffrey Kamau Way in Nakuru Town on October 11, 2020.
Photo credit: File | Nation
In June, Masha Wario, describing himself as a public-interest litigant, filed another challenge at the ELRC. He argued that Mr Mainga had exceeded the maximum tenure allowed for a managing director.
According to the petition, Mr Mainga had served two three-year terms and remained at the helm of the corporation for close to a decade.
Mr Wario argued that the managing director and chief executive officer is a public office involving management of public resources and exercise of public authority. He contended that Mr Mainga continued exercising the office’s powers, including signing contracts and entering agreements, despite completing the two terms he considered permissible.
Mr Mainga took over from former managing director Atnas Maina in an acting capacity in 2018 before being confirmed. He had previously served as Kenya Railways’ business research and general manager.
In August, Joan Machuma Nyongesa filed a petition at the ELRC in Kisumu seeking orders stopping Mr Mainga from continuing in office. She obtained interim orders temporarily barring him from exercising the powers of managing director pending determination of her challenge.
A day after obtaining the orders, Ms Nyongesa filed a notice withdrawing both the petition and application. The withdrawal lifted the interim orders.
Ms Nyongesa’s petition stated that Mr Mainga was substantively appointed managing director on February 3, 2020, for three years and received a second term from February 3, 2023. She argued that the second term expired on February 2, 2026. She relied on the Government Owned Enterprises Act, 2025, which came into force on December 5, 2025. Mr Mainga’s appointment history and the legal effect of the 2025 Act are central to the latest case.
Structures demolished by Kenya Railways Corporation near the railway line in Kibarani, Mombasa in this picture taken on April 14, 2025.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit | Nation
She argued that Section 22 limits a chief executive officer’s tenure to three years, renewable once, while paragraph 10(3) of the Fourth Schedule preserves an existing lawful term but does not create an additional term or restart the limit.
The court battles come as Kenya Railways oversees infrastructure projects central to the Government’s transport agenda. These include the planned extension of the SGR from Naivasha to Kisumu and Malaba. The Ministry of Roads and Transport says the Naivasha-Kisumu section will cover 264 kilometres and Kisumu-Malaba 107 kilometres.
The corporation is also involved in the proposed Sh12 billion Riruta-Ngong metre-gauge railway project, whose implementation was recently suspended by a court pending compliance with legal directives issued in the case.
