1. Vide Petition dated 17th July 2025, the Petitioner herein seeks the following orders;
1) A declaration that Grace Mueni Nyaa is a person suffering from a mental illness under the Mental Health Act and is in need of care and protection.
2) An order committing Grace Mueni Nyaa to Chiromo Lane Medical Centre for purposes of mental evaluation, treatment and supervision under the care of a registered medical practitioner in the said institution.
3) An Order appointing the Public Trustee or such other suitable person as this Honourable Court may deem fit, as the representative and / or supporter of Grace Mueni Nyaa.
2. The Petition was filed contemporaneously with Notice of Motion in which the following orders were sought
1) Spent
2) Spent
3) THAT the Honourable Court be pleased to issue an interim order committing Grace Mueni Nyaa to Chiromo Lane Medical Centre for purposes of mental evaluation, treatment and supervision under the care of a registered medical practitioner in the said institution pending the hearing and determination of the Petition
4) The Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) Police Station Nairobi or such other police station as the Court may direct, do facilitate the safe apprehension and transportation of Grace Mueni Nyaa to the Chiromo Lane Medical Centre in accordance with Section 16 of the Mental Health Act.
5) That Honourable Court be pleased to make such other and further orders as it may deem just and expedient in the circumstances.
3. The Petition and Notice of Motion are supported by the Affidavits of Samuel Kibugi sworn on 17th July 2025. He is a Company Secretary of the Cooperative Bank of Kenya Limited. The Subject is known to him as a long standing personal and Corporate client of the Bank. He is concerned by the recent public actions of the Subject which have led him to the conclusion that she is not well and may require treatment for mental illness.
4. His employer, the bank has reached out to her business partner, Naomi Muthoni Mwangi and a Peter Kamau Muturi who introduced them to the subject to put them in touch with the family members of the subject to no avail. In an effort to contact the family the Bank has also posted a notice on their social media page alerting the public that they were engaging a medical facility and that efforts were being made to trace the next of kin.
5. In his Affidavit Samuel Kabugi depones that the actions exhibited by the Subject are out of character and he is apprehensive that she may be suffering from a mental infirmity. The bank has sought the opinion/ advise of a Medical Practitioner, Dr. C Gumbo, who in his letter dated 17th July 2025, observes as follows
This is a case of a highly agitated individual currently on the premises of your bank, exhibiting severe behavourial disturbance including bizarre behaviour, use of vulgar language, grandiosity and public indecency by stripping naked outside the bank. This behaviour poses a risk to both the individual and members of the public and requires immediate psychiatric intervention.
6. The Petition was canvassed via written submissions with Counsel for the Petitioner highlighting the Submissions on 23rd July 2025.
7. The Petitioner invokes the Constitutional provisions regarding the safeguarding of human rights of individuals and the Mental Health Act with regard to the state responsibility to protect the rights of persons with mental illness.
8. It is submitted that the Petitioner has the locus standi to present this position by virtue of Article 22 of the Constitution and reference made to the decisions in John Florence Maritime Services Limited & Another v Cabinet Secretary Transport & Infrastructure & 3 Others [2021] eKLR; Kimani & 20 Others ( On behalf of Themselves and all members of Korogocho Owners Welfare Association) v Attorney General & 2 Others [ 2020] eKLR; Matemu v Trusted Society of Human Rights Alliance & 5 Others [2014] eKLR; Okoiti & 2 Others v Attorney General & 14 Others ( Petition ( Application) 2(E002) of 2021) [2023] eKLR.
9. Reference is made to the decision in MMG v Tribunal Appointed to investigate the conduct of Hon Lady Justice MMG, Judge of the Environment and Land Court of Kenya ( Petition 10 (E013) OF 2022 [2023] KESC 73 (KLR) and DK and DK V Republic ( Criminal Case 38 of 2020) [2025] eKLR on principles to guide a Court in making a determination of appropriate orders under the Mental health Act and the decision in re BKON (Subject) (Miscellaneous Application E067 of 2025) [2025] eKLR on the necessity of expeditious hearing of applications of this nature.
10. It is submitted that in arriving at its decision the Court should be guided by the best interests of the subject as was enunciated in the decision of Re TKM (Miscellaneous Application E027 of 2023) [ 2023] eKLR.
11. The Petitioner has made available video recordings of the Subject taken outside the Cooperative Bank in which she states that she has lost money at the bank through collusion of the Bank and her business partner. On the video, she is reading a letter she says was written to her by the bank. She appears agitated by the contents of that letter and persons present and within the vicinity of the bank. She keeps repeating that she is recording the video and she will upload it onto her social media page ‘Kings and Queen of Africa.’ She is nude in the video save for a beaded headband.
12. It is averred that she has been captured exhibiting this behaviour on more than one occasion and has threatened to continue doing so. She is creating a public disturbance and has interfered with access of others to the bank.
13. In arriving at my decision, I have cautioned myself that the Subject’s right to freedom of expression is protected under Article 33 of the Constitution. I have also reminded myself that the subject has the constitutional guarantee to freedom and security of the person and right to privacy.
14. In effect the Subject is free to express and publish her opinions and she cannot be arbitrarily deprived of her liberty and she is protected from involuntary searches on her person, subject only to the limitations permissible by law.
15. Article 24 of the Constitution of Kenya sets out the circumstances under which an individual’s rights may be limited as follows-
Article 24. Limitation of rights and fundamental freedoms
(1)A right or fundamental freedom in the Bill of Rights shall not be limited except by law, and then only to the extent that the limitation is reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom, taking into account all relevant factors, including—
(a)the nature of the right or fundamental freedom;
(b)the importance of the purpose of the limitation;
(c)the nature and extent of the limitation;
(d)the need to ensure that the enjoyment of rights and fundamental freedoms by any individual does not prejudice the rights and fundamental freedoms of others; and
(e)the relation between the limitation and its purpose and whether there are less restrictive means to achieve the purpose.
16. With regard to persons suffering or suspected to be suffering from mental illness, the Mental Health Act provides the legislative framework for the protection of the rights of these individuals.
17. The provisions of the Act touching on involuntary admissions mirror Principle 16 of the UN Principles for the Protection of Persons with Mental Illness and the Improvement of Mental Care ( Adopted 17th December 1991) which provides-
Involuntary admission
1. A person may
( a ) be admitted involuntarily to a mental health facility as a patient; or
( b ) having already been admitted voluntarily as a patient, be retained as an involuntary patient in the mental health facility if, and only if, a qualified mental health practitioner authorized by law for that purpose determines, in accordance with Principle 4, that that person has a mental illness and considers:
( a ) That, because of that mental illness, there is a serious likelihood of immediate or imminent harm to that person or to other persons; or
( b ) That, in the case of a person whose mental illness is severe and whose judgement is impaired, failure to admit or retain that person is likely to lead to a serious deterioration in his or her condition or will prevent the giving of appropriate treatment that can only be given by admission to a mental health facility in accordance with the principle of the least restrictive alternative.
In the case referred to in subparagraph ( b ), a second such mental health practitioner, independent of the first, should be consulted where possible. If such consultation takes place, the involuntary admission or retention may not take place unless the second mental health practitioner concurs.
2. Involuntary admission or retention shall initially be for a short period as specified by domestic law for observation and preliminary treatment pending review of the admission or retention by the review body. The grounds of the admission shall be communicated to the patient without delay and the fact of the admission and the grounds for it shall also be communicated promptly and in detail to the review body, to the patient's personal representative, if any, and, unless the patient objects, to the patient's family.
3. A mental health facility may receive involuntarily admitted patients only if the facility has been designated to do so by a competent authority prescribed by domestic law.
18. The criteria to be met for an order involuntary observation to issue, is -
1) The Subject has through their observed actions exhibited likelihood of mental illness
2) Attempts have been made to have the Subject undergo voluntary testing or it is evidently pointless to try this
3) There is a risk of harm to the Subject or others
4) The assessment is in the best interests of the Subject.
19. It is submitted that the Subject is behaving out of Character, she is a known customer of the bank and in the past has carried herself with dignity, decorum and respect. Her recent actions are indicative that all is not well. There is on record an opinion by a medical practitioner who posits that this conduct may be indicative of a mental illness.
20. As stated, I have viewed the video recording, the behaviour of the Subject especially that she seems to be agitated by a wrong committed by the bank is not what would be expected of a woman of her status in society. I refer to her apparent age and that she is of African extraction. It is not expected that under normal circumstances a woman of her age would display her nudity in public. This warrants an examination to confirm whether she is suffering from a mental illness so that if she is, she can have access to the treatment necessary.
21. The Petitioner is concerned that if this situation remains unaddressed, there is a likelihood that the Subject may cause harm to herself or others and this can be prevented by having her examined and enabling her to access treatment. I am alive to the coercive nature of the orders sought and the prescriptive provisions of the Mental Health Act that are tailored to ensure that the Court acts in the best interests of the Subject.
22. On the basis of the video and the averments by the Petitioner/ Applicant that this behaviour is out of character on the part of the Subject, I am persuaded that a basis has been laid for there to be an assessment to determine whether the Subject is suffering from mental illness as it has been demonstrated that she may cause harm to herself or others and is likely to act in a manner that is offensive to public decency.( See Section 16 (1)(c )) of the Mental health Act.
23. Section 16 of the Mental health Act, lays out the process to be followed. I am conscious that I am required to take the least restrictive measures so as to minimize the risk of the curtailment of the Subject’s rights, therefore-
1) Pursuant to Section 16 the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) Police Station, Nairobi will immediately facilitate the safe apprehension and transportation of Grace Mueni Nyaa to Chiromo Lane Medical Centre within 24 hours.
2) Upon admission at Chiromo Lane Medical Centre, the Medical Officer in Charge of Chiromo Lane Medical Centre and the Medical Superintendent Mathare Mental Hospital shall both examine or cause the Subject to be examined to determine whether she should be admitted as an involuntary patient.
3) The examination shall be undertaken and report prepared within 72 hours from the date of admission at Chiromo Lane Medical Centre.
4) The costs for the delivery of the Subject to the medical facility and assessment shall be met by the Petitioner herein.
24. The matter will be mentioned on 28th July 2025 to receive the reports of the Doctors and to take further directions on the hearing of the Petition.
25. The County Criminal Investigating Officer, Nairobi ( DCIO) will attend Court on 28th July 2025 to furnish the Court with details of the next of Kin of the Subject.
SIGNED, DATED AND DELIVERED VIRTUALLY AT NAIROBI THIS 24TH DAY OF JULY, 2025
1) A declaration that Grace Mueni Nyaa is a person suffering from a mental illness under the Mental Health Act and is in need of care and protection.
2) An order committing Grace Mueni Nyaa to Chiromo Lane Medical Centre for purposes of mental evaluation, treatment and supervision under the care of a registered medical practitioner in the said institution.
3) An Order appointing the Public Trustee or such other suitable person as this Honourable Court may deem fit, as the representative and / or supporter of Grace Mueni Nyaa.
2. The Petition was filed contemporaneously with Notice of Motion in which the following orders were sought
1) Spent
2) Spent
3) THAT the Honourable Court be pleased to issue an interim order committing Grace Mueni Nyaa to Chiromo Lane Medical Centre for purposes of mental evaluation, treatment and supervision under the care of a registered medical practitioner in the said institution pending the hearing and determination of the Petition
4) The Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) Police Station Nairobi or such other police station as the Court may direct, do facilitate the safe apprehension and transportation of Grace Mueni Nyaa to the Chiromo Lane Medical Centre in accordance with Section 16 of the Mental Health Act.
5) That Honourable Court be pleased to make such other and further orders as it may deem just and expedient in the circumstances.
3. The Petition and Notice of Motion are supported by the Affidavits of Samuel Kibugi sworn on 17th July 2025. He is a Company Secretary of the Cooperative Bank of Kenya Limited. The Subject is known to him as a long standing personal and Corporate client of the Bank. He is concerned by the recent public actions of the Subject which have led him to the conclusion that she is not well and may require treatment for mental illness.
4. His employer, the bank has reached out to her business partner, Naomi Muthoni Mwangi and a Peter Kamau Muturi who introduced them to the subject to put them in touch with the family members of the subject to no avail. In an effort to contact the family the Bank has also posted a notice on their social media page alerting the public that they were engaging a medical facility and that efforts were being made to trace the next of kin.
5. In his Affidavit Samuel Kabugi depones that the actions exhibited by the Subject are out of character and he is apprehensive that she may be suffering from a mental infirmity. The bank has sought the opinion/ advise of a Medical Practitioner, Dr. C Gumbo, who in his letter dated 17th July 2025, observes as follows
This is a case of a highly agitated individual currently on the premises of your bank, exhibiting severe behavourial disturbance including bizarre behaviour, use of vulgar language, grandiosity and public indecency by stripping naked outside the bank. This behaviour poses a risk to both the individual and members of the public and requires immediate psychiatric intervention.
6. The Petition was canvassed via written submissions with Counsel for the Petitioner highlighting the Submissions on 23rd July 2025.
7. The Petitioner invokes the Constitutional provisions regarding the safeguarding of human rights of individuals and the Mental Health Act with regard to the state responsibility to protect the rights of persons with mental illness.
8. It is submitted that the Petitioner has the locus standi to present this position by virtue of Article 22 of the Constitution and reference made to the decisions in John Florence Maritime Services Limited & Another v Cabinet Secretary Transport & Infrastructure & 3 Others [2021] eKLR; Kimani & 20 Others ( On behalf of Themselves and all members of Korogocho Owners Welfare Association) v Attorney General & 2 Others [ 2020] eKLR; Matemu v Trusted Society of Human Rights Alliance & 5 Others [2014] eKLR; Okoiti & 2 Others v Attorney General & 14 Others ( Petition ( Application) 2(E002) of 2021) [2023] eKLR.
9. Reference is made to the decision in MMG v Tribunal Appointed to investigate the conduct of Hon Lady Justice MMG, Judge of the Environment and Land Court of Kenya ( Petition 10 (E013) OF 2022 [2023] KESC 73 (KLR) and DK and DK V Republic ( Criminal Case 38 of 2020) [2025] eKLR on principles to guide a Court in making a determination of appropriate orders under the Mental health Act and the decision in re BKON (Subject) (Miscellaneous Application E067 of 2025) [2025] eKLR on the necessity of expeditious hearing of applications of this nature.
10. It is submitted that in arriving at its decision the Court should be guided by the best interests of the subject as was enunciated in the decision of Re TKM (Miscellaneous Application E027 of 2023) [ 2023] eKLR.
11. The Petitioner has made available video recordings of the Subject taken outside the Cooperative Bank in which she states that she has lost money at the bank through collusion of the Bank and her business partner. On the video, she is reading a letter she says was written to her by the bank. She appears agitated by the contents of that letter and persons present and within the vicinity of the bank. She keeps repeating that she is recording the video and she will upload it onto her social media page ‘Kings and Queen of Africa.’ She is nude in the video save for a beaded headband.
12. It is averred that she has been captured exhibiting this behaviour on more than one occasion and has threatened to continue doing so. She is creating a public disturbance and has interfered with access of others to the bank.
13. In arriving at my decision, I have cautioned myself that the Subject’s right to freedom of expression is protected under Article 33 of the Constitution. I have also reminded myself that the subject has the constitutional guarantee to freedom and security of the person and right to privacy.
14. In effect the Subject is free to express and publish her opinions and she cannot be arbitrarily deprived of her liberty and she is protected from involuntary searches on her person, subject only to the limitations permissible by law.
15. Article 24 of the Constitution of Kenya sets out the circumstances under which an individual’s rights may be limited as follows-
Article 24. Limitation of rights and fundamental freedoms
(1)A right or fundamental freedom in the Bill of Rights shall not be limited except by law, and then only to the extent that the limitation is reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom, taking into account all relevant factors, including—
(a)the nature of the right or fundamental freedom;
(b)the importance of the purpose of the limitation;
(c)the nature and extent of the limitation;
(d)the need to ensure that the enjoyment of rights and fundamental freedoms by any individual does not prejudice the rights and fundamental freedoms of others; and
(e)the relation between the limitation and its purpose and whether there are less restrictive means to achieve the purpose.
16. With regard to persons suffering or suspected to be suffering from mental illness, the Mental Health Act provides the legislative framework for the protection of the rights of these individuals.
17. The provisions of the Act touching on involuntary admissions mirror Principle 16 of the UN Principles for the Protection of Persons with Mental Illness and the Improvement of Mental Care ( Adopted 17th December 1991) which provides-
Involuntary admission
1. A person may
( a ) be admitted involuntarily to a mental health facility as a patient; or
( b ) having already been admitted voluntarily as a patient, be retained as an involuntary patient in the mental health facility if, and only if, a qualified mental health practitioner authorized by law for that purpose determines, in accordance with Principle 4, that that person has a mental illness and considers:
( a ) That, because of that mental illness, there is a serious likelihood of immediate or imminent harm to that person or to other persons; or
( b ) That, in the case of a person whose mental illness is severe and whose judgement is impaired, failure to admit or retain that person is likely to lead to a serious deterioration in his or her condition or will prevent the giving of appropriate treatment that can only be given by admission to a mental health facility in accordance with the principle of the least restrictive alternative.
In the case referred to in subparagraph ( b ), a second such mental health practitioner, independent of the first, should be consulted where possible. If such consultation takes place, the involuntary admission or retention may not take place unless the second mental health practitioner concurs.
2. Involuntary admission or retention shall initially be for a short period as specified by domestic law for observation and preliminary treatment pending review of the admission or retention by the review body. The grounds of the admission shall be communicated to the patient without delay and the fact of the admission and the grounds for it shall also be communicated promptly and in detail to the review body, to the patient's personal representative, if any, and, unless the patient objects, to the patient's family.
3. A mental health facility may receive involuntarily admitted patients only if the facility has been designated to do so by a competent authority prescribed by domestic law.
18. The criteria to be met for an order involuntary observation to issue, is -
1) The Subject has through their observed actions exhibited likelihood of mental illness
2) Attempts have been made to have the Subject undergo voluntary testing or it is evidently pointless to try this
3) There is a risk of harm to the Subject or others
4) The assessment is in the best interests of the Subject.
19. It is submitted that the Subject is behaving out of Character, she is a known customer of the bank and in the past has carried herself with dignity, decorum and respect. Her recent actions are indicative that all is not well. There is on record an opinion by a medical practitioner who posits that this conduct may be indicative of a mental illness.
20. As stated, I have viewed the video recording, the behaviour of the Subject especially that she seems to be agitated by a wrong committed by the bank is not what would be expected of a woman of her status in society. I refer to her apparent age and that she is of African extraction. It is not expected that under normal circumstances a woman of her age would display her nudity in public. This warrants an examination to confirm whether she is suffering from a mental illness so that if she is, she can have access to the treatment necessary.
21. The Petitioner is concerned that if this situation remains unaddressed, there is a likelihood that the Subject may cause harm to herself or others and this can be prevented by having her examined and enabling her to access treatment. I am alive to the coercive nature of the orders sought and the prescriptive provisions of the Mental Health Act that are tailored to ensure that the Court acts in the best interests of the Subject.
22. On the basis of the video and the averments by the Petitioner/ Applicant that this behaviour is out of character on the part of the Subject, I am persuaded that a basis has been laid for there to be an assessment to determine whether the Subject is suffering from mental illness as it has been demonstrated that she may cause harm to herself or others and is likely to act in a manner that is offensive to public decency.( See Section 16 (1)(c )) of the Mental health Act.
23. Section 16 of the Mental health Act, lays out the process to be followed. I am conscious that I am required to take the least restrictive measures so as to minimize the risk of the curtailment of the Subject’s rights, therefore-
1) Pursuant to Section 16 the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) Police Station, Nairobi will immediately facilitate the safe apprehension and transportation of Grace Mueni Nyaa to Chiromo Lane Medical Centre within 24 hours.
2) Upon admission at Chiromo Lane Medical Centre, the Medical Officer in Charge of Chiromo Lane Medical Centre and the Medical Superintendent Mathare Mental Hospital shall both examine or cause the Subject to be examined to determine whether she should be admitted as an involuntary patient.
3) The examination shall be undertaken and report prepared within 72 hours from the date of admission at Chiromo Lane Medical Centre.
4) The costs for the delivery of the Subject to the medical facility and assessment shall be met by the Petitioner herein.
24. The matter will be mentioned on 28th July 2025 to receive the reports of the Doctors and to take further directions on the hearing of the Petition.
25. The County Criminal Investigating Officer, Nairobi ( DCIO) will attend Court on 28th July 2025 to furnish the Court with details of the next of Kin of the Subject.
SIGNED, DATED AND DELIVERED VIRTUALLY AT NAIROBI THIS 24TH DAY OF JULY, 2025