March 19, 2024

Mombasa County owes Lawyer Sh120 Million in Arrears

Mr Lumutate Muchai of the Lumatete Muchai & Co (Photo/The COAST Reporter)

By The COAST Reporter

Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmail.com

A Mombasa based advocate has threatened to take serious legal action against the local County Government for defaulting in paying his accumulated fees of Ksh 126 million.

Mr Lumutate Muchai of the Lumatete Muchai & Co fumed that County has repeatedly ignored his demands.

The distraught lawyer said his attempts to recover the money owed by the county have been long and windy and the only proper approach of recourse now available is to pursue the unpaid fees through the courts.

He said his team has met the County officials severally to discuss the debts but promises made at the meetings have yielded nothing.

The advocate said his firm is now ready to go on the offensive in the hunt to recover the unpaid fees since 2008.

He said his firm represented the defunct Mombasa Municipal Council before the transition to the current dispensation of governance in 2013.

“The only option open to us now is to sue the recalcitrant county government of Mombasa to recover the unpaid legal bills,” he said.

 Misappropriation

The long standing lawyer said the National Treasury have severally released funds to the counties to settle their pending bills, but whenever the monies hits the county treasuries they end up in non-core issues.

He wondered why the county was becoming difficult despite receiving disbursements from the Treasury.

Muchai said they are now willing to file lawsuits to confront the impunity demonstrated by the county authorities.

He said it was regrettable that some people who did business with the counties have ended up committing suicide due to the unpaid bills.

Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho (Photo / Courtesy)

 Pressure Group

A local human rights organization, MUHURI, has come to the defense of the law firm saying it suspects corruption and unethical dealings on the part of the devolved unit.

Khelef Khalifa, Chairman, MUHURI Board of Directors says the county has not disputed the fees owed to Lumatete, but has failed to explain why it did not pay the firm.

Khalifa says there are numerous complaints against the county over pending bills amounting to millions of shillings.

 Rip Off

County Assembly of Mombasa Building (Photo/ Courtesy)

He noted that service providers are not paid yet the county financial system shows their debts are cleared.

The civil society and human rights activist says MUHURI is demanding that the county clear genuine pending bills, including those it owes to Lumatete.

He observed that where there is fraud, complicit staff must be held accountable.

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