Governor Wamatangi sues Tatu City for defamation over land

Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi. [File, Standard]

Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi has sued Tatu City for defamation following unsubstantiated extortion claims.

In a suit filed before the High Court in Thika, Wamatangi accuses the company and the Chief Operating Officer Preston Mendenhall of deliberately maligning his reputation by describing his official demand for land for public utilities an act of extortion.

Justice Florence Muchemi on Thursday issued interim orders barring Mendenhall and Tatu City from making defamatory comments about the governor.

"Pending the hearing of this application inter partes, a temporary injunction is hereby issued against Mendenhall and Tatu City, restraining them from publishing any defamatory posts or publications regarding the governor and any transaction related to the approval of the Tatu City Master Plan," the Judge ruled.

Justice Muchemi directed the governor to serve the suit to Mendenhall and Tatu City within seven days. The defendants have 14 days to file their response. She fixed mention for the case on October 23.

Separately, the Kiambu county Lands CEC Salome Wainaina has also sued Tatu City and Mendenhall for libel and slander following similar claims.

The governor is seeking damages from Mendenhall and Tatu City for the publication of the defamatory utterances.

In the suit, Governor Wamatangi accuses the Tatu City official of convening a press conference to malign his name by claiming that he had attempted to extort land, when in fact, he was demanding the surrender of land for public use.

In a suit filed by Okong'o Omongeni and Company advocates, Wamatangi avers that Mendenhall convened a press conference where his (Wamatangi) photograph bearing the title "Extortion of Foreign Direct Investors," was displayed.

"During the press conference, Mendenhall, with raw arrogance without any lawful justification and with malice aforethought, negligently and intentionally uttered false allegations of extortion and defamatory words against myself," he states in the suit.

He describes the utterances by the Tatu City official as "unfounded, untrue, defamatory, false, hurtful, embarrassing and lacking any basis at all and which utterances have injured and caused significant damage to my reputation."

Aggravating the situation

The lawyer said that the authority assigned to the governor by the people of Kiambu county was that of public trust, and which requires him to have commitment to good governance, transparency and accountability in words and deeds.

"Utterances by the defendant have put the Governor's reputation and that of his office in jeopardy and he may risk removal from office on false allegations," the lawyer said in pleadings filed in court.

Wamatangi has accused Mendenhall of further aggravating the situation through a letter dated July 14, responding to an invitation to meet the Kiambu county government on the Tatu City Master Plan.

He said despite written demand and clear intention to sue, the defendants have declined to desist from defaming him.