Fear as NASA Principal risks being thrown in jail

dennis kibet

April 23, 2017 11:41 AM

NASA headache

Nasa principals (from left: Musalia Mudavadi, Raila Odinga, Isaac Ruto, Kalonzo Musyoka, and Moses Wetang'ula) display their solidarity at Bomas of Kenya on April 20, 2017.

The National Super Alliance (NASA) principal Moses Wetangula faces arrest and being locked up in jail following a high court ruling.

The court has given the Bungoma Senator up to May 10 to pay Sh5.8 million election petition costs he owes former Minister Musikari Kombo or else he will be locked up in jail.

The Sh5.8 million arose from two decisions in which he lost to Kombo which up to now Wetangula has not paid.

Kombo was Wetangula’s main rival in the 2013 Bungoma Senatorial contest.

Although he lost to Wetangula, Kombo successfully challenged the NASA principal’s electoral victory at the High Court and won with costs.

Lawyer Alfred Ndambiri, representing Kombo, had made an application to recover the money on February 17 that was awarded to the politician, following the invalidation of Wetangula’s election by Justice Francis Gikonyo on September 30, 2013.

Wetang’ula later appealed the decision but lost the appeal with costs.

NASA complications

Ndambiri says his client has been unable to extract the costs from Wetang’ula since 2014.

He says they even instructed auctioneers to attach Wetangula’s property but it did not help. They then decided to seek the court’s help.

The court's decision is likely to complicate matters for NASA with the general elections barely 100 days away as they seek to put up a united front in an attempt to wrestle power from the Jubilee Party led by President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto.

Speaking at Bomas this week, Wetangula stated that they would name the presidential candidate and running mate on Thursday next week at Uhuru Park in a major event.

At the same event in Bomas, Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka, Wetangula and Musalia Mudavadi welcomed Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto as the fifth principal of the alliance.

dennis kibet