Narok governor Samuel Ole Tunai sued for wrongful termination

BY LEONARD KORIR

Narok, Kenya; Narok county residents will have to wait a little bit longer before getting a new executive committee member in charge of Agriculture, Fisheries and Livestock,  following a court order barring any recruitment to fill the vacant position left by Richard Bwogo Birir, who earlier held the position.

Justice Byram Ongaya at the Industrial court of Kenya in Nakuru issued the order after Birir moved to court to challenge his recent dismissal by governor, Samuel Ole Tunai.

In his petition, Birir through his lawyer, Geoffrey Otieno named Narok county government, Narok county governor and the Attorney General as the first, second and third respondents respectively.

Ongaya certified the application urgent and ordered that, pending the hearing of the application, the respondents themselves, their agents or servants were restrained from undertaking an advertisement, recruitment or appointment to fill the vacant position left by the petitioner.

“Upon hearing the oral submission made by the applicant’s advocates and upon reading the pleadings, supporting affidavits and exhibits attached thereof, I hereby order that the named respondents desist from filling the vacant position left by the petitioner until the full hearing of the application,” ordered Ongaya.

The order in effect stopped the swearing in of Joshua Cheruiyot, a former high school deputy principal who had been appointed by the second respondent to take over from the petitioner.

The petitioner had set the record for becoming the first county executive committee member in the country to be shown the door.

With the court order in place now, agriculture which is the main source of livelihood among the local residents is set to suffer the greatest brunt as the legal battle proceeds.