Kay Construction Company Limited v Chief Accounting Officer, Kenya Rural Roads Authority & another (Judicial Review Application E086 of 2024) [2025] KEHC 8956 (KLR) (Judicial Review) (24 June 2025) (Judgment)
- Court
- High Court of Kenya
- Case number
- 8956
- Citation
- [2025] KEHC 8956 (KLR)
- Decided
- 24 June 2025
The Court held that mandamus will not issue due to the Respondents' ongoing efforts and the lack of a concrete payment plan or timeline, despite the Respondents' acknowledgment of the debt.
Facts
The Applicant obtained an Arbitration Award for Kshs. 41,210,454, which was adopted by the court. The decree was for Kshs. 40,913,055, including interest. Despite service of the Certificate of Order, only Kshs. 10 million was paid, leaving a balance of Kshs. 40,913,055.
Issues
- whether the Applicant has met the threshold for issuance of an order of mandamus
- whether the application is premature given the Respondents' alleged ongoing efforts to settle the decree
- whether mandamus can be issued where payment is dependent on budgetary allocation by the National Treasury and verification by the pending Bills Verification Committee
Reasoning
The Court applied the principles of mandamus, emphasizing that the Respondents have failed to perform a public duty and that the decree remains unpaid. The Court noted that the Respondents have made some efforts but these do not satisfy the threshold of discharging a public duty.
Outcome
The application for mandamus was dismissed.
Authorities cited
Legislation (2)
- Government Proceedings Act
- Civil Procedure Rules
Cases cited (5)
- Republic v Kenya National Examination Council Ex Parte Gathenji
- Dr. Rai Shivendra Bahadur v Governing Body of the Nalunda College
- Union of India v Shree Gajanan Mahanaj Sansthan
- Five Star Agencies Ltd & Another v National Land Commission & 2 Others
- Republic v County Chief Officer, Finance & Economic Planning, Nairobi City County ex parte Stanley Muturi
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