Govt ordered to pay ex-soldiers Sh222m for unfair dismissal

Parliament has ordered the government to pay 39 former soldiers Sh222 million for unfair dismissal and inhumane treatment during the 1982 coup attempt.

The Senate's National Security Defence and Foreign Relations committee on Wednesday said the State can no longer subject the soldiers to unfair treatment over the compensation claim.

The case has been in the corridors of justice for the last 30 years but the government has continued to ignore the court's directives.

In their petition to the Senate, the soldiers said they were arrested, tortured, detained and imprisoned for six months to several years without compensation.

They filed several petitions at the High Court and were awarded compensation by different judges on diverse dates.

FRUSTRATION

In a meeting with Defence Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo on Wednesday, the committee said the government had no option but to look for the money and pay the soldiers.

“The ministry should do [everything possible] to pay these people. We cannot allow it to punish these people further,” said committee chairman Yusuf Haji.

“Our decision is that these people must be paid. Thirty years is a long time for any country not to dispose of such cases."

The senators accused CS Omamo and the ministry of endlessly frustrating the soldiers' yet they dedicated their time to serving the country.

“It would be an injustice to delay this payment further,” said Judith Pareno (nominated).

POVERTY

Kisumu Senator Fred Outa accused the CS of ignoring the court, thereby infringing upon the rights of the petitioners.

“We will not open a Pandora's box in a case where the court has already pronounced itself. We are all required to defend the Constitution. The soldiers have all done their parts where court procedures are concerned,” he said.

Nakuru Senator Susan Kihika also told the ministry that it had to make the payment.

“We cannot continue to delay the payment yet some have died and their families are living in abject poverty,” Ms Kihika said.

Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang'ula noted that both the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General told the ministry to pay the ex-soldiers.

“The Attorney-General, who is the principal adviser of the government, has already pronounced himself on this matter. What is the ministry waiting for? The CS should not engage us in semantics,” Mr Wetang'ula said.

GOVT'S APPEAL

Ms Omamo explained that the ministry filed a notice of appeal on some of the cases that were settled 10 years ago.

She also told the committee that her responsibility was to ensure prudent use of taxpayers' money in paying the 39 people.

“These sums of money don’t belong to me. I have a duty to protect the money,” she said.

She added, "The court must hear our side of the story. We will plead with the court to overturn these judgements. We are also interested in upholding the Constitution and doing the right thing to ensure taxpayers' money is properly used."

Mr Wetang'ula dismissed Ms Omamo's appeal as a ploy to delay justice.

“On what basis are you appealing, if not dragging the case to ensure the petitioners do not enjoy their pay?"

The petitioners said several letters to the Defence department had not yielded any fruits.