Former Kiambu County Governor Ferdinand Waititu is being escorted to a Milimani Law Court on February 13, 2025.
Jailed former Kiambu governor Ferdinand Waititu is not admitted at Kenyatta National Hospital but is being treated at the Industrial Area Prison, his lawyers have said.
The former governor has also appealed against his sentence, citing 57 grounds he hopes will see his conviction quashed.
Mr Waititu began serving his 12-year jail term on February 14 after failing to raise a Sh53.5 million fine for pocketing over Sh25 million in kickbacks for the award of a Sh588 tender during his tenure as county chief.
The ex-governor was convicted alongside his wife, Susan Wangari, who was slapped with a Sh500,000 fine or 12 months imprisonment in default. She paid the fine and was released on the same day.
Former Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu at the Milimani Law Courts on February 12, 2025.
Besides appealing against the conviction and sentence, Mr Waititu is also seeking to be released on bond pending the determination of his appeal.
His lawyers Stanley Kinyanjui, Shadrack Wambui, Danstan Omari and Sam Nyaberi told the High Court that the appeal has high chances of success.
“Waititu, who is ailing, is recuperating at the Nairobi Remand Home and Allocation Centre clinic where he was referred to by Kenyatta National Hospital where he was escorted by prison authorities in the company of his lawyers,” Mr Omari stated at the High Court after filing the appeal.
Mr Omari said that trial Magistrate Thomas Nzioka misapplied the law and failed to consider all the evidence presented before him.
“The prosecution had failed to establish their case to the required standard of beyond a reasonable doubt,” his lawyers state in the appeal. They claim that the magistrate failed to appreciate contradictions in the evidence presented, which created reasonable doubt about Mr Waititu’s involvement in the alleged crimes.
They further argue that the trial court did not give sufficient attention to his testimony or provide due analysis to his well-articulated defence.
“The trial court erred in law and in fact by failing to subject the evidence of the prosecution to a test of credibility and admissibility,” the appeal states.
The lawyers have urged the court to speed up the bail determination citing their client’s health condition. They argue Mr Waititu requires urgent medical attention due to his severe high blood pressure.
Former Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu and his wife Susan Wangari Ndung’u at the Milimani Law Court on February 12, 2025.
“Waititu is likely to suffer if he continues to remain in custody given his medical condition which requires constant care,” the lawyers state, adding that denying Mr Waititu bail would violate his fundamental right to liberty.
“The fundamental freedom to liberty is not arbitrarily suspended once an accused has been convicted,” the lawyers argue.
Mr Waititu, they say, should be given an opportunity to appeal while out on bail, considering his long-standing residence in Kenya and his established role as a public figure.
“The appellant is well known with a permanent abode in the Republic of Kenya and therefore not a flight risk,” they say.
