Defence Principal Secretary Patrick Mariru on Tuesday failed to appear in court for sentencing over disobeying court orders that directed him to pay Sh134 million to ten former Air Force soldiers following their illegal dismissal.

Justice John Chigiti had summoned the PS to appear in person on Tuesday at 11 a.m. for mitigation and sentencing over his continued defiance of a court order related to the compensation of David Gitau Njau and nine others.

The amount represents damages awarded for the violation of the soldiers’ rights and their dismissal from military service after the failed 1982 coup.

Justice Chigiti ruled that Mariru willfully disobeyed a valid court order that compelled the Ministry of Defence to settle a judgment debt from a 2013 ruling in favour of the ten petitioners, who had successfully argued their constitutional rights had been violated.

While summoning the PS, the judge said the reasons advanced by Mariru through his lawyer to justify the non-settlement “are not tenable in the eyes of any democratic front.”

“The only way that justice will be served in this case is by allowing the application against former serving officers that the Principal Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Patrick Mariru,” ruled Justice Chigiti, adding, 

“Hon. Patrick Mariru is hereby cited for Contempt of Court for disobeying and defying the Judgment, Decree and the Order of Mandamus.”

The former soldiers were awarded the damages by the High Court more than 11 years ago.
 In 2018, they obtained orders compelling the Defence Ministry to enforce the judgment, which still remains unpaid.

Explaining the delay, PS Mariru told the court that he was constrained by government financial austerity measures and that no funds had been allocated by Parliament to settle the Sh134,748,152 owed.

The ex-soldiers are now asking the court to commit Mariru to prison for six months, fine him personally, or impose any other lawful punishment the court deems appropriate. They pointed out that the judgment and decree have never been appealed or set aside.

Mariru insisted the disobedience was not willful, arguing that the Ministry of Defence had not received any exchequer disbursement to pay the decree. He said the claim was a substantial amount that needed to be factored into the Ministry’s budget before any payment could be authorised.

He added that he could only be accountable for what the ministry is allocated, and since Parliament had not made such an allocation, it would be manifestly unjust to hold him in contempt when he neither controls nor determines government funding.

Justice Chigiti, however, dismissed Mariru’s explanation, calling it “untenable.”

“Austerity measures cannot amount to any justice if they yield no fruits to decree holders like the Applicants,” the judge said.

“Delay as in the instant suit cannot be said to be reasonable in the eyes of any reasonable person, and the same amounts to a denial of justice.”

He added that the PS’s actions amounted to conduct that defied the authority and dignity of the court.

“It is unfortunate that this is a very old decree which has remained unsettled. Fair administrative action dictates that closure of such cases must take place within a reasonable time. A delay as in the instant suit cannot be said to be one that is reasonable in the eyes of any reasonable person,” said Justice Chigiti.

Efforts by the PS, through the Attorney-General, to oppose the contempt application proved futile after the court declined all arguments.

The judge ordered Mariru to appear before him on May 20, 2025, for sentencing and to confirm whether the Ministry of Defence had complied with the court’s payment orders.

If he fails to appear, a warrant of arrest will be issued and executed by either the Military Police or the National Police Service.

The case dates back to a 2013 High Court judgment awarding Sh55 million plus interest and costs to the applicants for violation of their rights by the Ministry of Defence.

Despite a Mandamus order issued in 2018 and a Senate directive in 2019 requiring payment within 60 days, the Ministry has failed to settle the now-inflated sum of Sh134,748,152.54.

“This judgment debt has remained unpaid for over a decade, even after all legal channels have been exhausted,” said David Gitau Njau, the lead applicant.

“This is not just contempt of court it is contempt of justice and contempt of the Constitution.”

The ten former Kenya Air Force officers David Gitau, Shaban Mwadosho, Johana Kisorio, Hassan Mohammed, Daniel Koi, Khamisi Mwamgute, Peter Mungai, Jacob Mwaliko, Alfred Mwathethe, and Graham Wambaa were serving at the time of the attempted coup on August 1, 1982.

They were arrested by Kenya Army officers on suspicion of involvement in the coup, allegedly based solely on their affiliation with the Air Force.

In a 2012 petition, they claimed that during and after their arrests, they were subjected to torture and degrading treatment.

Specifically, they alleged they were stripped naked in public, forced to walk on their knees on concrete floors, whipped, kicked, bludgeoned, and transported in military trucks while naked and in full view of the public.

They argued this treatment violated their rights to dignity, legal protection, and freedom from cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment.