Kazungu Kambi fights order to return Uhuru's child adoption agency under supervision

An adoption row sparked off by a Cabinet secretary who had exempted a child welfare agency associated with President Kenyatta from mandatory supervision is back in the court, with the minister now seeking a stay of execution of the judgment that declared his decision illegal.

Labour Cabinet Secretary Kazungu Kambi and Child Welfare Society of  Kenya, whose patron is Mr Kenyatta, on Wednesday requested the High Court for a stay pending the hearing of an appeal against the verdict.

The court on September 20, 2014 quashed Mr Kambi’s decision to exempt the Child Welfare Society of Kenya from supervision and mandatory regulatory procedures.

Presiding judge Weldon Korir ruled that the CS erred in issuing the exemption from the supervisory and licensing provisions of Section 177 of the Children’s Act, stating that all agencies involved in adoption must be supervised by t the Child Adoption Committee.

DIRECT VIOLATION

Five adoption homes and 220 adopted youth filed the case, claiming Mr Kambi’s gazette notice exempting the agency associated with the President was “improper and in bad faith”.

They claimed Mr Kambi passed the regulation in favour of the state-sponsored child welfare society in total disregard to the Constitution.

In the suit filed on April 25, 2014, the petitioners claimed that Mr Kambi’s decision was a direct violation of Article 53(2) of the Constitution, and that the welfare society had been allowed, “through the backdoor,” to carry out adoptions without the sanctions, supervision and accountability.

Yesterday, they told the court that Mr Kambi and the agency were at it again, trying to employ a delay tactic against a clear judgment and to justify the operations of an unrecognized entity.

OPPOSED REQUEST

Five lawyers opposed the request for stay, stating that the agency had been given a “grace period” when the judge suspended the execution of his order against Mr Kambi on condition that the CS facilitate the renewal of registration and regularisation of all adoption agencies in the country, including the Child Welfare Society of Kenya.

Mr Kambi and the agency, the lawyers said, opted for “exemption”  rather than “compliance” and that he had been given enough time to “get back into the fold.”

They asked the court to apply a distinction in its ruling in a manner that may not be misconstrued to give “a nod to the agency to carry out adoption while not registered as an adoption society.”

The lawyers said the fresh bid to stay the judgment was a “backway manoeuvre” calculated to contravene adoption regulations, which require that a licensed agency conduct adoption under supervision of the adoption committee.

“Allowing the application would be tantamount to allowing the agency to operate outside the law,” the lawyers submitted.

IRREPARABLE DAMAGE

However, the lawyers representing Mr Kambi and the Child Welfare Society led by Ken Ogeto told the court that about 300 children who were in the process of being adopted through the agency stand to “suffer irreparable damage if the stay is not granted.”

“We will be relying on the affidavit of (Hon) Kazungu Kambi…there is the demonstrated fact that the applicant will suffer substantially in the event that stay is not granted,” Mr Ogeto submitted.

He said the pending appeal would then be rendered worthless and that the agency would suffer substantial loss as public funds had already been allocated for the adoption processes.

Justice Korir had suspended the execution of the judgment for three months after he restricted Mr Kambi from implementing the exemption rule.

A ruling will be delivered on March 6.