The County Government of Kisumu has been ordered to pay an investor KSh7.4 billion over the demolition of his business stalls in 2021.
High Court Judge Justice Joe Omido directed the county’s responsible accounting officers to settle the amount, together with interest, within 180 days of the judgment delivered on Thursday.
The investor, through his company Spacebuster, moved to court in 2022 seeking compensation after the demolitions carried out by the Kisumu City management.
The company won the case, but the county failed to honour the resulting judgment, prompting Spacebuster to obtain a Certificate of Order against the county government.
During the latest proceedings, the county, through CEC for Finance George Okong’o Omondi, opposed the application, arguing that the KSh7.4 billion award was too large to be accommodated within the existing county budget.
Justice Omido rejected the argument, holding that allowing a government officer to determine whether a court judgment is financially convenient or affordable would undermine the rule of law.
The judge clarified that the 180-day period was granted only to allow the county to make lawful financial arrangements for payment and did not suspend or alter the original judgment.
The court further warned that failure to comply could expose the responsible officers to consequential orders, including personal contempt proceedings.
Spacebuster is therefore at liberty to return to court should the county fail to comply with the payment order within the stipulated period.
