MP Salasya ordered to pay Sh500,000 debt plus interest

Kakamega Small Claims Court Resident Magistrate Gladys Kiama Nashipai during the delivery of a judgment on November 27, 2023, where she ordered Mumias East MP Peter Salasya to pay Sh500,000 owed to a businessman plus interests and the cost of the case. [Benjamin Sakwa, Standard]

The Kakamega Small Claims Court (SCC) has ordered Mumias East MP Peter Kalerwa (PK) Salasya to pay Sh500,000 owed to a businessman, plus accrued interest.

The court dismissed the MP's counterclaim against paying the debt as inadequate, implausible and dissuasive.

In the judgment delivered yesterday afternoon by SCC Adjudicator Gladys Kiama Nashipai, the lawmaker was also ordered to pay the cost incurred by the Kakamega-based businessman Robert Lutta in filing the case.

"The counterclaim by the respondent (Salasya) was inconsistent. He first claimed that he had personally loaned the claimant (Lutta) Sh1 million, which he (Lutta) was repaying only to change during the hearing by saying that he loaned the money through a proxy," reads part of the judgment.

Identification parade

"The proxy in question, one Bernard Kemba, could in turn not even identify the claimant (Lutta) even after an identification parade was carried out in court."

Nashipai also said even as the businessman had bank transfer proof to back his claim that he loaned Salasya the Sh500,000 that he refused to pay, the latter lacked binding evidence to show that he loaned Lutta the alleged Sh1 million.

Salasya, who was represented by lawyer Webo, asked the court for a 30-day stay on the execution of the judgment, which was granted.

Through lawyer Edwin Wafula, Lutta sued the MP on October 23, alleging that he innocently loaned Salasya the amount in the hope that he would refund it in two months, but has since become elusive.

"Being a friend for so many years, I accepted to advance him the amount on December 13, last year (2022)," he says in his court papers.

Direct transfer

"On the material day, I proceeded to the Kenya Commercial Bank, Mumias branch, where I made a direct transfer of the Sh500,000 to the personal account of the MP, who promised to refund the amount within two months from the date of the transaction."

Lutta regretted that the MP had failed, refused, neglected and ignored to refund the amount despite frequent reminders.

He successfully requested the SCC to compel the MP to refund the money with interest and pay for the cost of the case.

Lutta had attached the bank transfer details.

He had earlier said he was ready to employ the Civil Procedure Act (Section 38) that allows the imprisonment of debt defaulters to commit the MP to civil jail should he win the case and fail to repay.