This archive report was first published on 9 June 2020.
Kenya: Kariobangi Demolition Victims Sue State, Want CSs Fired ¶
On May 4, 2020, the government's demolition of houses in Kariobangi left over 7,000 residents homeless. The affected residents, represented by the Kariobangi Sewerage Farmers Self Help Group, have since petitioned the Nairobi High Court's Constitution and Human Rights Division to declare three Cabinet Secretaries unfit to serve as public officers.
The targeted Cabinet Secretaries are Fred Matiang'i (Interior), Sicily Kariuki (Water), and Faridah Karoney (Lands). They are accused of disobeying a court order that halted the evictions. The petition also names Inspector General of police Hilary Mutyambai and Attorney General Kihara Kariuki as respondents.
According to the petition, filed by constitutional lawyer Dr. John Khaminwa, the respondents are liable for the forceful eviction of the residents from a piece of land that is said to be government property. The petitioners claim that they were allocated the property by the government and issued with title deeds, and have been paying land rates to the Nairobi County Government.
The group is seeking an order declaring that the eviction and flattening of houses by bulldozers on May 4, 2020, was unlawful and against the rule of law. They also want an order awarding them punitive damages.
On claims against CS Kariuki, the group says she authored a letter dated April 22, 2020, directing the mass eviction. Dr. Matiang'i is sued for disobedience of court orders and failing to prevent police from conducting the exercise. Ms. Karoney is sued for overseeing the eviction of the petitioners despite a court order dated May 3, 2020, being in force.
The Attorney General has been sued for failing to advise the government to desist from the eviction, while police boss Mutyambai is said to have failed to ensure officers used their power rationally during the exercise.
"The respondents have no respect for the rule of law. The anarchy ought not to supersede the written laws and which bind government actions," says lawyer Khaminwa in the 14-page petition.
They have listed Kituo Cha Sheria (Legal Advice Centre) as an interested party.
As the residents were not given adequate notice of three months, they were caught unprepared by the April 22 letter requiring them to vacate. The letter also did not provide the period within which the eviction would take place, says the lawyer.
Following the notice, the residents moved to court and secured an order on May 3 directing that status quo on the property be maintained until the case was heard and determined.
Before proceeding with the eviction, Mr. Khaminwa says the State officials failed to ensure an environment, social, and economic impact assessment had been carried out.
"The effects of the eviction are visible, destruction of families, human suffering, and loss of properties. The image created by the eviction to the rest of the country is that the petitioners are second-class citizens," states Mr. Khaminwa.
