REPUBLIC OF KENYA
IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND LAND COURT AT NYANDARUA
ELC CASE NO 41 OF 2023
Formerly Nyahururu ELC 19 of 2018
RUTH WANJERI KAMWERE suing as administrator of the estate of John Kamwere Gichuhi (Deceased)..................1st PLAINTIFF
GEORGE KIMANI & DAVID KANOGA KAGUMA suing as Administrators of the estate of Eliud Kiarii Kaguma (Deceased)............................................................2ND PLAINTIFF
Versus
VINCENT NYINGI NDERITU.................................DEFENDANT
RULING
In the Certificate of Urgency Application dated 10/6/2025, the Plaintiffs prays for orders :-
1. Spent
2. That pending hearing and determination of this Application inter partes the officer commanding Njabini Police Station alongside VINCENT NYNGI NDERITU be ordered to personally appear before Court and show cause why they have declined to enforce the orders of the Court of Appeal issued by Hon. Justice of Appeal S. Ole Kantai, Hon. Justice of Appeal F.Ochieng and Hon. Justice of Appeal W.Korir respectively in Nakuru Civil Application (Appeal) No. E051 OF 2023 with regard to land parcel No. Nyandarua/Njabini/615 as against the Defendant, his servants, agents and workers who have perpetually been cutting trees and carrying them in huge lorries for sale in broad day light and further digging , planting crops and damaging the suit land.
3. That the Defendant/Respondent VINCENT NYINGI NDERITU be committed to prison for a maximum period of six (6) months for contempt of Court of the status quo orders issued by the Court of Appeal at Nakuru on 26th July, 2024 ordering the parties herein to maintain the status quo with regard to land parcel No. Nyandarua/Njabini/615.
4. Costs of the Application be borne by the Respondent.
The Plaintiffs buttressed the Application on grounds on the face of the Application that the Defendant has disobeyed the status quo Orders granted by the Court of Appeal on 26/7/2024 in Civil Appeal (Application) No. E051 of 2023 and that the officer commanding Njabini Police station has declined to enforce and observe the Orders, that the OCPD has preferred Criminal charges against the Plaintiff instead but allowed the Defendants to interfere with the status of NYANDARUA/NJABINI/615. They further state that on 28/5/2025 the Defendant and his agents uprooted all the Plaintiffs’ crops from the suit land and also the same day and without authority, the Defendant erected a wire mesh such that the Plaintiffs and their families cannot access their land and their crops in spite of the Defendant and the Njabini OCS having severally being served with the Court Order with the Penal Notice.
The Plaintiffs state that the disobeyed Order had stayed the Orders of the High Court. Further, in the Supporting Affidavit of Ruth Wanjeri Kamwere, the 1st Plaintiff explains that the Court of Appeal on 26/7/2024 made a Ruling in Civil Application No. E051 of 2023 where the Court stayed the Ruling of the ELC Nyandarua (Y.M.Angima – Judge) dated 2/3/2023.
The stayed Ruling was the eviction of the Applicants from the suit land. But that notwithstanding, the Defendant on 20/4/2025 uprooted all the Plaintiffs’ crops on the suit land and erected wire mesh to keep the Plaintiffs away from the land and further the police charged the Plaintiffs with assault causing actual bodily harm contrary to Section 251 of the Penal Code.
In his Affidavit in Reply to the aforesaid Application sworn on 30/6/2025 and filed in Court on 2/7/2025, in opposition to the Application on the ground that first, the Application was similar to another one of 12/9/2024 against a County Surveyor Nyandarua South which was dismissed with costs and that this Application is an attempt to have him evicted from the suit land.
He further denies to have ever committed the atrocities he is accused of. He also says that as for the photographs annexed to the Application it is not ascertained that they are of the suit land nor do they prove that the damage caused on the land was by the Defendant/Respondent and that it is him and his family who have been subjected to criminal assault, robbery, violence, verbal insults and also hired goons were hired to evict them from the suit land. He sums up his Affidavit by deponing that the Application is fatally defective since this Court is being asked to enforce orders of another Court, the Court of Appeal and that the alleged order that was disobeyed is not attached to the Application at hand which I agree with and hence dismiss the Application with costs.
Ruling Read and Delivered in Nyandarua this 20th Day of November 2025.
MUGO KAMAU
JUDGE
In the Presence of: -
Court Assistant: Samson.
Mr. Wachakana for the Plaintiff.
Mr. Were for the Defendant.
| 2 |