Court freezes bank accounts of two firms

The Meru High Court has prohibited two Isiolo-based contractors from carrying out any transactions in their accounts in a commercial bank.

This was in a suit involving Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), Noyasu Construction Company Ltd against Dabasiti Construction and Suppliers Ltd.

The two companies claim they rendered services to the Isiolo County Government, but their dues have not been settled owing to objections by EACC.

In a case that came before Judge Cherere J, the court issued an order prohibiting Noyasu Construction Co Ltd from withdrawing, transferring, disposal of or other dealings with Sh3,053,000 or any amount thereof held at Equity Bank Ltd pending the hearing of an application to confirm compliance with the order.

The case mention is set for February 9, this year.

The respondent had filed the case under a certificate of urgency on December 31, 2020 seeking orders to set aside, vary, and discharge its order made on December 24 freezing the applicant’s bank account.

Judge Edward Murithi directed the application be served for hearing or directions before Cherere on January 19.

Noyasu Construction Company’s Ibrahim Hillow, in an affidavit, said Noyasu supplied goods and offered services to Isiolo County Government, which declined to pay them. He argued all tendering procedures were religiously adhered to, as attested by documents. After the refusal to pay, they filed a civil suit at the Isiolo law courts.

The company claimed it was owed Sh163.40 million and that they had entered into consents dated August 13, 2019, on the modalities of payment. According to the said deal, Sh80 million was to be paid by December 15, 2019, and Sh83.38 million paid by September 9, 2019.

The court also froze the bank account of Dabasiti Construction and Suppliers Ltd and prohibited it from transferring or disposing of Sh16.36 million or any amount held at Equity Bank.

In the verifying affidavit by Abdow Bishar Maalim, a director of Dabasiti said the Isiolo government approached the company sometime in 2015 to provide motor vehicles for hire. The cars were meant for the governor’s official use for 183 days, between October 11, 2015, to March 31, 2016, at Sh4.58 million.

The director said the hire of transport services for administrative activities in the governor’s office from August 1, 2015, to December 30, 2015, or 153 days for Sh25,000 totalled Sh3.83 million.

The firm said they got a bank facility to bankroll the tenders and prayed to be awarded Sh8.4 million and interest at court rates from the date of invoicing.