The Court of Appeal has reversed the High Court‘s ruling that imposed a 67-year prison sentence on Sirisia Member of Parliament (MP) John Waluke, along with a sh1 billion fine related to a maize importation fraud case.
Waluke was convicted of fraud and illicitly acquiring sh313 million through corrupt practices involving the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) and was sentenced to prison by the Anti-Corruption Court on June 22, 2020.
Following his conviction, he appealed the ruling in the High Court but was unsuccessful, leading to his incarceration in November 2022.
He later escalated the case to the Court of Appeal, which granted him a bond of sh10 million while his appeal was pending.
Before filing the appeal, Waluke spent four months at Kamiti Maximum Prison in Nairobi.
His legal representatives, Otiende Amollo and Elisha Ongoya, contended in court that the case against Waluke had been misinterpreted and that the harsh 67-year sentence was politically motivated.
They argued that the funds in question were legitimately awarded to Waluke and co-defendant Grace Wakhungu as part of an arbitration decision confirmed by the High Court against the NCPB.
According to Waluke, the sh313 million was lawfully paid following an arbitral award for breach of contract after his company, Erad Supplies & General Contractors, was supposed to deliver 40,000 metric tonnes of maize to the NCPB in 2004.
However, the company failed to provide the maize, resulting in the cancellation of the tender due to insufficient proof of funds.
The company then initiated legal action against the NCPB, claiming that it had already procured maize from Ethiopia, which was stored by Chelsea Freight, a South African firm, in Djibouti.
In her previous ruling, High Court Judge Esther Maina emphasized the seriousness of the offenses, noting that Waluke and his co-defendants had fraudulently acquired public funds through falsified invoices.
“The offenses are grave, as the accused exploited a critical situation where many Kenyans were suffering from hunger and in urgent need of maize to avert starvation.
Such actions warrant a deterrent sentence,” Judge Maina stated.
