A reported decision to exclude journalists from proceedings in a KSh14.95 million fraud case at Milimani Law Courts has raised questions about public access to court proceedings, particularly because the prosecution concerns involving money paid for medical supplies and documents issued by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS).
The case involving Barnabas Kiprop Bwabok had moved behind closed doors, with journalists completely shut out. The precise terms of any court order, the reasons for restricting access and the role of the lawyers involved were not known.
The charge sheets supplied to Nyakundi Report show that Bwabok was charged in 2022 with obtaining money by false pretences, forgery, making a false document and uttering a false document.
The first count on the charge sheet states that between April 1 and May 19, 2022, within Nairobi, Bwabok obtained KSh14,950,000 from Ollyvian Agencies through an account linked to his company, Amara BB, by falsely claiming he was able to supply microcuvettes, described in the document as medical kits.
The charge sheet identifies accounts at Sidian Bank and Stanbic Bank in connection with the transaction.
The other counts concern a KEBS Local Certificate of Conformity, identified as UCR202204009387. The charge sheet states that the document was forged and made on May 17, 2022, and that it was later presented at City Hall Annex in Nairobi on July 19, 2022, as though it had genuinely been issued by the Kenya Bureau of Standards.
The prosecution’s case therefore concern both the money obtained for the supply of medical kits and the authenticity of the certification document said to support the transaction.
The latest report has brought renewed attention to the circumstances under which journalists were excluded from the proceedings.
A source has claimed that lawyer Danstan Omari is involved in the matter and suggested that legal representatives may have sought restrictions on media coverage.
Morning xxx and xxx kindly inform everyone that this matter has a gag order for all media and it will proceed in camera before Magistrate Paul Mutai.- Reads The media gag order on covering the Ksh14 million fraud case
Kenya’s Constitution guarantees the right to a fair and public hearing under Article 50. It also permits the exclusion of the press or public in limited circumstances, including where necessary to protect witnesses or vulnerable persons, morality, public order or national security.
Nasikia hiyo kesi iko na Danstan Omari, so ilikuwa isikizwe juzi, Friday 9. It is like the accused alikuwa ametoa pesa ipeanwe but Omari ni kama akataka akule pekee yake na team yake. So instead akaenda kuobtain gag orders against the media.- the source alleged.
Nyakundi Report is calling for clarification from the Milimani Law Courts, the prosecution and the lawyers involved on whether a formal order restricting media access exists, who requested it and why the hearing was conducted without cameras. The court record should establish the exact scope of any restriction, rather than leaving journalists and the public to rely on competing accounts.
Why were journalists excluded from the proceedings in a case involving KSh14.95 million, and what specific legal grounds justified the restriction?