Eurocopter ordered to apologise over report

By Ally Jamah

Commissioners Maj Gen (Rtd) Harold Tangai and Capt Peter Maranga with Chairlady Lady Justice Kalpana Rawal leave KICC after sitting. [Photo: Standard]

The Commission of Inquiry probing the copter crash that killed former Internal Security minister George Saitoti and his Assistant Orwa Ojode has ordered Eurocopter to apologise over a report about the crash

The report, allegedly prepared by French investigators and made various conclusions about the June 10 crash, was e-mailed to the commission by Eurocopter lawyer Anthony Gross on Tuesday in a move that sparked protests from lawyers representing victims of the crash.

The lawyers which included Fredrick Ngatia (for the Saitoti family), Gikandi Miriti (for the police), Ashford Muriuki (for pilot Nancy Gituanja’s family), Mayiani Sankale (for the family of Joshua Tonkei) had said the report “interfered” with the work of the commission. In its ruling on Friday, the commission led by Appellate Judge Kalpana Rawal ruled that Eurocopter should “tender an unconditional apology to the commission for improper and unauthorised dissemination of the report” to the commission.

They indicated that Eurocopter violated the Convention of the International Civil Aviation, by disclosing information about an aircrash to the commission without the express permission of the Kenyan Government. The report is still being analysed by the Department of Air Accidents Investigations of the Ministry of Transport.

The commission directed the apology be published in all leading newspapers in the country in the next seven days or they would consider further action against the helicopter manufacturer.

The ruling also called on The Standard and The Star newspapers to apologise for publishing the contents of the report declaring it to be “in the nature of interference with the judicial mandate of the Commission,” The ruling termed media report as “improper”.

“The two newspapers published the details of the said report giving an impression to the public that the report could have been part and parcel of the commission’s proceedings. That’s undue interference with the work of the commission,” said the ruling.

On Wednesday, Gross admitted receiving the report from Eurocopter and e-mailing it to the commission in “the spirit of sharing relevant information” to help in unraveling the cause of the crash.

But he denounced the fact that someone in his e-mail list shared it with the media saying the document should have remained undisclosed to the public.