John Waluke appeals over prison term, pleads for bail

According to the lawyer, the judge took a narrow view of the case by isolating the convicts' evidence including other decisions by the High Court which had confirmed that the money the two received through their company Erad Supplies Limited was not acquired through corruption.

Mr Okubasu argued that since the amount was paid pursuant to an arbitration award and an order of the High Court, there is nothing to justify the decision of Justice Maina to uphold the lengthy sentences and hefty fines, Sh1.8 billion, imposed on Waluke and Wakhungu.

On the claim that the document used by the convicts to claim the Sh313 million from the National Cereals and Produce Board was forged, the lawyers argued that the judge failed to independently ascertain if the forgery claims were true.

"She made a mistake by finding that the document was forged when there was no report from any document examiner. She also failed to consider that the main witness in the case did not testify while another key witness was not interrogated," said Okubasu.

Waluke and Wakhungu argued that the judge had a preconceived decision to jail them and ignored all the evidence they had filed to prove their innocence, including observation by another judge that their appeal had high chances of success.

In their application to be released on bail, Waluke and Wakhungu said they are sickly and that the jail conditions are worsening their situation.

"There are exceptional circumstances to my case that do not warrant my incarceration. I am 82 years old with deteriorating physical health. I have hypertension, diabetes and I am a Covid-19 survivor with residual symptoms," said Wakhungu.