Judge pulls out of railway tender case

A court case challenging construction of the multi-billion shilling standard-gauge railway will start afresh after a judge passed on the file to his superior.

Activists Okiya Omtatah and Wycliffe Gisebe had demanded that Justice David Majanja quit the case. He transferred the case files to Mr Justice Isaac Lenaola.
The activists had claimed the judge was delaying the case.

“The petitioners are accusing me of delaying the matter although the proceedings show that it has not been delayed. Their allegation lacks factual basis and is frivolous. I find their application as an abuse of the court process and transfer the file to the presiding judge of the division,” the judge ruled.

Justice Majanja, who was recently moved to the Homa Bay High Court, and is supposed to report next week, did not say why he stepped down from handling the matter.

The judge gave the directions as Attorney-General Githu Muigai opposed a similar petition by the Law Society of Kenya seeking to stop construction of the railway project.

State Counsel Mwangi Njoroge said the application by LSK was “unmerited, lacked substance and (was) only meant to embarrass the government before Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang when he visited the country. Most of the allegations are based on misleading information and without any evidence of corruption.

Violates Constitution
“Their claims have not established any defect in the procedure used to award the contract to China Road and Bridge Corporation.”

LSK wants to stop the Kenya Railways Corporation from proceeding with the contract, arguing, the tender award violates the Constitution.

The LSK claimed that the Chinese company does not have the necessary qualifications, capacity, experience and resources to construct the railway.