Mercy Auma
Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Nelson Havi has faulted the court ruling that declared the Standard Gauge Railways (SGR) contract unconstitutional.
According to Havi, there is foul play in the ruling as the state might be planning to use the ruling in their favour should the company, China Road and Bridge Company sue for breach of contract.
Through a tweet, Havi indicated that things were not adding up in the court of appeal ruling declaring SGR project unconstitutional and unlawful.
Something doesn’t add up in Court of Appeal’s decision declaring completed SGR project unconstitutional and unlawful. It may be a preparatory process for GoK to plead illegality at an international arbitration should China Road and Bridge Corporation sue for breach of contract.
— Nelson Havi (@NelsonHavi) June 19, 2020
This was after the court of appeal judges Justice Martha Koome, Judge Kairu and Jamilla Mohammed made the ruling that they were not persuaded the procurement of SGR followed due constitutional procedure since it did not go through a competitive bidding process.
Read: LSK Raises Concerns Over Death Threats Against Nelson Havi Amid Planned Uhuru Impeachment
According to online reports, Kenya has been under pressure to repay the SGR loan despite facing tough economic effects due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The details of the contract between the Kenyan government and China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) on the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) have remained under the wraps, despite the pressure from the public to make it open.
Last year, CRBC refused to share the crucial information to a task force mandated to review the Ksh327 billion SGR that had been termed as skewed.
A team comprising of representatives from the Presidential Delivery Unit, the Office of the Attorney-General, Kenya Railways (KR), Ministry of Transport, the National Treasury and CRBC had been formed to review the contracts to ensure Kenya protected its interests and assets.
By the end of 2020, Kenya was expected to have repaid at least Sh50 billion of the loan.
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