Asbestos waste firm
stares at contempt case
By Martin Masai
A
firm associated with the family of Kenya’s first African Chief Justice faces
contempt proceedings after it failed to comply with a court order to remove
toxic asbestos waste from a Kitui site.
The High Court gave the firm- Sonata Limited
a 15 day ultimatum on September 28 to remove and dispose of the poisonous cargo. The deadline ended on
October 13,2018. Sonata first buried the waste at Kiongwe Valley on land associated with the Kitili family, raising hue and cry from residents over
looming danger of contaminating water sources at the valley.
Upon
assuming office, Governor Kaluki Ngilu, in response to calls from Kitui
residents, moved to secure the water tower by removing the waste that is now held
in two containers at a yard in Kanyoonyoo.
When
the matter came up before Machakos Resident Judge Justice A O Angote the court barred Kitili’s son-Maluki Kitili Mwendwa and
the company- Sonata Limited- from depositing any hazardous waste in Kiongwe
Valley LR Number Nzambani/ Maluma/ 690, pending the hearing of a suit filed by
the Kitui County Government against the pair.
The
order signified a major victory for Governor
Ngilu who made an election pledge to protect Kitui people from the poisonous
effects of the asbestos waste that Maluki and Sonata Ltd buried at Kiongwe
valley, endangering the lives of thousands of residents who draw water from
streams originating from the area marked as a water tower.
The judge partially
allowed prayers sought by the County Government of Kitui in an Environment and
Land Court Petition Number 2 of January 16, 2018.
A
spot check today by this writer at Kanyoonyoo noticed the containers defiantly
placed at the yard without any indication as to when the Court Order would
be obeyed.
Contempt
proceedings could result in a hefty fine, a jail term or other sanctions
against the offending firm jointly with its advocates, that court would deem
fit to meet the ends of justice.
Lawyer Simon Saili Malonza, who successfully prosecuted the petition
assisted by Mr. Davidson Makau and Marriane Mutuvi indicated today that he
will be filing contempt proceedings against Sonata Ltd for failure to comply
with the court order.
When
he gave the order, Justice Angote also directed that costs of the removal of the waste be met by Sonata Ltd and directed that the company, Nema
and Maluki pay costs of the application to the County Government.
“ A mandatory
injunction be and is hereby issued compelling the 1st respondent
to identify and relocate the asbestos which had been deposited on the suit land
to a different and suitable site, within fifteen(15) days, for disposal of the
waste in accordance with the provisions of the Environmental Management and
Coordination Act pending the hearing and determination of the petition” said
Justice Angote.
The County Government
has listed as respondents Messers Sonata Kenya Limited, Maluki Kitili Mwendwa,
National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) as Ist, 2nd and
3rd respondents.
Maluki is the immediate
former NEMA Chairman and it is curious that he is facing a suit that runs
in the face of the public obligation that he was appointed to serve.
In the petition, the
government is seeking 9 prayers that include a declaration that Sonata Kenya
Limited is in breach of Article 42 of the Constitution of Kenya and that the
act of dumping asbestos waste in Kiongwe valley in connivance with Maluki, had
denied the residents of Kitui County the right to a clean and healthy
environment as guaranteed in Article 42 of the Constitution, thus leading to a
breach of the Constitution.
The government also
seeks and order for the restoration of Kiongwe valley to its original state
before it was violated by dumping of the poisonous waste and refund of tax
payers’ money that the County Government used to remove the waste.
