The High Court has given Kanu executive director George Wainaina four months to pay businessman Clement Aboge an outstanding debt of Sh113 million or risk going to jail.
He is required to deposit Sh30 million immediately and pay Sh20 million monthly between March and May. The balance is to be paid by June 30.
Justice Francis Mabeya said in default of any one monthly instalment, the entire sum will become payable immediately and the warrants of arrest issued on November 19, 2020 will be revived for execution forthwith.
“It is not in doubt that the decretal sum of Sh113,005,365 is a colossal amount of money. This arose from the judgment entered against the Judgment Debtor on February 6, 2019 on account of an arbitral award. The Judgment Debtor is ready and willing to settle the amount save that he is not able to do so in lump sum,” he said.
The judge suspended the warrants of arrest to allow Mr Wainaina, a former chief of staff at the Nairobi City County government, to comply with the payment schedule issued by the court.
Mr Wainaina wanted the court to allow him to liquidate the debt by making a payment of Sh1 million within seven days and thereafter Sh250,000 per month until payment in full.
He told the court that he earns a net salary of Sh299,999, of which he had planned to use Sh250,000 monthly towards the settlement of the decretal sum.
Mr Wainaina is also in the process of disposing of his properties, including nine parcels of land in Kijabe (five plots), Nakuru (two plots), Nyandarua (one plot) and Konza Malili (one plot). He plans to use the proceeds to offset the debt.
In the alternative, he’s willing to transfer the properties to Mr Aboge as part of the debt payment. He annexed his pay slip and also produced title documents for various properties he reportedly owns, though he did not attach requisite searches.
He claimed that he intended to sell the said properties and use the proceeds to liquidate the outstanding debt.
Mr Wainaina noted that if he is committed to civil jail for non-payment of the debt, he will not be able to effect the settlement proposal, which he anticipated will enable him to pay the entire amount by June 30.
The debt emerged from an arbitration award recognised on February 6, 2019. Mr Wainaina had initially said that his delay to pay the amount was because his financial position had been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
He had also said that he was unwell and that the funds he had set aside to repay the debt had been depleted by his hospital bills.
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