Court orders Ezekiel Mutua to pay Nonini Sh3m over defamatory posts

Former Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) chief executive Ezekiel Mutua has been ordered to pay musician Nonini Sh3 million for defamatory remarks portraying him as a fugitive evading the law.

Milimani Commercial Magistrate J. Gitau also directed Mutua to pull down the offending social media posts  within 14 days of the October 26, 2026 judgment, ruling that the statements posted in socal media were likely to damage the musician’s reputation.

In the judgment, the court found that Hubert Mbuku Nakitare, popularly known as Nonini had proved his defamation case against Mutua on a balance of probabilities.

“From a perusal of the remarks complained of, this court is persuaded that such remarks are likely to cause reputational damage as they have the effect of painting the plaintiff to be a fugitive who is outside the country in a bid to evade the law,” the court ruled.

The magistrate added that the remarks had been published and were likely to lower Nonini’s image in the eyes of right-thinking members of society.

The dispute arose from a public fallout between the musician and Mutua in early 2024 over the management and distribution of royalties collected on behalf of Kenyan artists.

Nonini told the court that he had been a member of MCSK but formally left the society in May 2022 after 24 years in the music industry, claiming he had not received substantial royalties.

The dispute escalated in January 2024 when MCSK announced a royalty distribution to its members, triggering public debate over the amounts artists were receiving and how the society accounted for the money collected.

Nonini said he obtained a letter addressed to the Kenya Copyright Board detailing the society’s collections and expenditure.

He subsequently shared information about the figures on his social media accounts, arguing that artists deserved to know how their royalties were being handled.

According to his court testimony, Mutua responded by publishing remarks on his X account suggesting that the musician was living in the United States to evade the law.

Nonini also accused the former MCSK chief executive of making defamatory remarks during an interview at a local radio station.

The musician maintained that the allegations were false, malicious and damaging to his reputation.

In February 2024, Nonini had publicly threatened legal action against Mutua, demanding that the posts be removed and an unconditional apology issued.

The escalating dispute between the two was over accusations concerning musicians’ royalties.

Mutua, however, denied defaming the musician, arguing that the suit lacked merit.

He also disputed Nonini’s account of why he had left MCSK and rejected allegations of widespread corruption or theft of artists’ royalties.

The court found that the musician had established the essential elements of defamation, including the defamatory nature of the remarks and their publication to third parties.

In assessing compensation, the magistrate considered previous court decisions involving defamatory publications and the extent of reputational injury suffered by the affected individuals.

“In the instance before me the plaintiff is a public figure and the impact of the defamatory remarks is likely to be far-reaching,” the court observed.

The magistrate awarded Nonini Sh2.5 million in general damages and a further Sh500,000 in exemplary and aggravated damages, bringing the total compensation to Sh3 million.

The court also ordered Mutua to bear the costs of the suit.

 

The ruling comes against the backdrop of the wider dispute over royalty payments in Kenya’s music industry, which saw artists publicly challenge MCSK’s distribution practices in 2024.

 

During a televised discussion in March that year, Nonini argued that artists were not receiving the money they deserved from the use of their music, while Mutua defended the society’s distribution process.

 

The court also issued the legal consequences of publishing allegations that damage another person’s reputation, particularly when such statements are circulated publicly.