Feuding Naivas duo to jointly peruse court papers with registrar for errors

What you need to know:

  • Mr Gachwe insists that Naivas was not part of his father’s estate as it was a limited liability company with its own directors.
  • But Mr Kagira strongly protested his exclusion, saying the ruling sanctioned a fraud to disinherit him a share of Naivas Ltd.

The High Court has directed the Nakuru deputy registrar to sit down with all feuding parties in a multi-billion-shilling suit pitting the owners of fast-growing supermarket chain Naivas Ltd against each other.

Lady Justice Abigail Mshila made the order after Justice Anyara Emukule, who has since moved from Nakuru, requested that the proceedings and judgment in a case regarding Naivas ownership be perused by both parties.

The succession case centres on Naivas’ founder Peter Kago Mukuha (deceased).

It follows a complaint by one of his sons, Mr Newton Kagira, that key details of the proceedings and the judgment were omitted and dates altered, which rendered his planned appeal null and void.

But lawyer Frank Mwangi, who appears for the proposed administrator of the estate, Mr Simon Gachwe, who is also Naivas chairman, described the anomalies as typographical errors that would hardly affect the proceedings.

Mr Kagira’s complaint noted that dates on when the chain was started had been altered to read 1999 and not 1990, thereby erasing its history as Rongai Service Stores — a family business that had its liabilities and assets taken over by Naivasha Self Selection Stores.

The name was later changed to Naivas Ltd, under two directors.

In court, both parties were agreeable to the order and the decision to have the matter mentioned next week before the deputy registrar, for perusal and correction of errors.

This will enable Mr Kagira to pursue his appeal following a ruling that saw him lose all interest in the multi-billion-shilling chain.

DRAGGED ON

The succession suit has dragged on in court after it emerged that Mr Kagira’s name had been omitted from the list of Mzee Kago’s children who were to share his estate that comprises land, businesses and Sh12.4 million in his bank account with the chain.

But the proposed administrator (Gachwe) filed an additional affidavit stating that his brother (Kagira) “squandered his opportunity to own a share in Naivas when he mismanaged Rongai Self Service Store, which had been placed under him in the early nineties, leading to Kagira’s arrest over alleged embezzlement of Sh230,000.

“Out of a heart to help him, we withdrew the embezzlement case in Nakuru on the advice of our father and proceeded to help him pick up the pieces by loaning him goods worth Sh46 million, which he used to start Greenmart Supermarket at Nairobi’s Kayole estate.

“He repaid Sh38 million but stopped the payments to Naivas Limited, claiming he had been disinherited in Naivas,” said Mr Gachwe.

Mr Gachwe insists that Naivas was not part of his father’s estate as it was a limited liability company with its own directors.

But Mr Kagira strongly protested his exclusion, saying the ruling sanctioned a fraud to disinherit him a share of Naivas Ltd.

According to Mr Gachwe, Naivas belongs to him (25 per cent), his brother the Naivas finance manager, Mr David Kimani (25 per cent), their sisters Grace and Linet who own 15per cent, and their late father (20 per cent).