Former Nairobi governor Evans Kidero and his wife, Susan Mboya, have mounted a fresh legal challenge against the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission after the agency held on to documents they say are not tied to the corruption case against them.
The dispute was active as of November 20, 2018, after the couple filed an urgent application seeking orders compelling the EACC to release papers they say were taken during searches linked to investigations into Kidero’s multi-billion shilling properties.
According to the petition, some of the material seized was private and had no bearing on the allegations being pursued by the anti-graft agency. Kidero said the withheld records included his will dated August 30, 2015, death certificates for his first wife Abigail Kidero and son Philip Kidero, Mumias Sugar Company annual general meeting documents, motor vehicle logbooks and tenancy agreements.
The couple’s lawyer, Tom Ojienda, told the court that the commission had failed to comply with an earlier order by Justice Hedwig Ong’udi directing it to release the documents within 72 hours. He accused the agency of contempt and said its conduct showed “total defiance, abuse of power and bad faith.”
Justice Ong’udi had on November 6 ordered the EACC to meet Kidero, prepare an inventory of the items seized and return them within three days. The judge also barred the commission from searching or investigating Kidero’s properties, or interfering with his businesses, until the dispute is determined.
Mboya also complained that the agency had refused to hand back records she said were hers, including her will of August 2014, documents relating to a property transaction in the United States, trademark certificates for her companies, bank statements, tenancy agreements and vehicle logbooks.
Kidero maintained that the commission was still pursuing him and his family despite the court order. He said the refusal to release the records showed an intention to keep interfering with his affairs and those of his wife.
He also attacked the valuation exercise that led to the dispute, alleging that EACC used unqualified personnel during the raid and property assessment. Kidero said Pius Maithya, who reportedly valued the properties at Sh9 billion, was not a registered valuer and may have used incorrect calculations, including properties he did not own.
In her affidavit, Mboya accused the commission of malice and said her property and documents were not part of the investigation. She said they had been seized without authority.
The matter was scheduled for hearing the same day.
