Airline wants Transport PS Nduva Muli summoned over cash withdrawal

The Ministry of Transport has been accused of withdrawing cash from a bank account after an airline company made an application to attach it to a Sh1.4 billion claim.

The court heard Monday that the cash held at National Bank was withdrawn after African Commuter Services moved to court to have the account attached. This is contained in the suit in which the airline is claiming the aviation industry regulator, Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) had transferred its monies to the same account to escape from honouring court orders.

The airline through lawyer Ahmednassir Abdullahi asked High Court Judge Alfred Mabeya to summon Transport Principal Secretary Nduva Muli to verify if the money in question is still in the account. However, the ministry defended itself, arguing that the airline should prove to the court that the cash is now missing from the account. Ahmednassir was challenged to have his client file an affidavit over the claims.

“It is for the first time we are hearing that the money has been withdrawn. The burden of proof lies with the airline,” the court heard.

Interested party

Judge Mabeya also dismissed an application to have the case heard by a bench. He noted that this will derail the hearing of the case.

“I consider the application by the interested party to be unfounded, and only meant to derail the conclusion of this matter,” Justice Mabeya ruled.

Both KCAA and the ministry had protested that the amount awarded was grossly exaggerated and that the transfer of the money by the aviation regulator was an ordinary process.  The airline was awarded Sh1.4 billion for the losses it had incurred due to the action after revocation of its licence by KCAA.

KCAA Corporation Secretary Judith Ng’ethe and Mr Nduva, in separate responses, argued that the amount awarded by the court had been reviewed to Sh820 million and that the monies transferred to the ministry’s account were meant for repaying of loans owed to the World Bank.

“From the outset, the aforementioned decree is irregularly obtained and the amounts therein grossly exaggerated. The judgment debtor has had the decremental sum reviewed and the said amount is now Sh820.7 million as opposed to the amount claimed in the sum of Sh1.421 billion,” Ng’ethe told the court.

Nduva in his affidavit said the account in contest was a joint one used even by the development partners and could not be attached to recover the money.

“I am aware that KCAA did make funds transfer on November 14, 2014 in respect to monies accrued for payment and continuously crystallising as the property of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, department of State for Transport as a custodian for the underlying loan guarantee agreements for scheduled payments to the development partners,” Nduva argued in a sworn affidavit.

The PS noted that the account was owned by the Transport ministry, not by the regulator and that the ministry was not bound to the judgment as it was not a party to the case. Justice Mabeya ordered the parties to appear before him tomorrow for further directions.