KENYA SGR SAGA: COURT DELIVERS VERDICT BETWEEN GOVT. & CHINESE FIRM

The Supreme Court has delivered a verdict affirming the legality and transparency of the Sh500 billion contract between Kenya and China for the construction of the Standard Gauge Railways (SGR).

The five apex court judges, in a unanimous decision, declared that the execution of the multi-billion project did not violate any procurement laws.

As a result, the Court set aside a previous ruling by the Court of Appeal, which had deemed the procurement process flawed.

For years, allegations of inflated SGR costs benefiting a select few individuals had dominated public discourse, frequently casting a negative light on retired President Kenyatta and his administration.

The Judges, however, conclusively settled the matter by ruling that no illegality was committed.

“The SGR procurement was undertaken as a government-to-government contract hence exempt from the provisions of the Public Procurement Disposal Act, 2005 by virtue of section 6(1) of the said Act,” they ruled.

During their first term of presidency in 2013, Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta and his then-deputy, William Ruto, signed and supervised the SGR project.