The hearing of the Sh1.5 billion land dispute between Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and former Lands official John Michael Ohas aborted yesterday after the High Court was informed the parties had engaged in an out of court settlement.
The new twist emerged before Justice Joseph Mboya after Gachagua’s lawyer Amos Kisilu sought to halt the trial saying they had engaged in Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanism.
“There is a consensus that the case be taken out of the hearing case list since the parties are seeking to have the matter settled out of court. We seek to be granted more time to conclude the negotiations,” said Kisilu who was holding brief for lawyer Philip Nyachoti.
While seeking the adjournment, the court also heard that Gachagua, who was also expected to testify in the case, was unable to attend court as he was engaged in other matters.
The Attorney General, through State counsel Allan Kamau, also sought to have the case adjourned as he was engaged in another matter in Narok.
Ohas, through lawyer Moses Owour protested the move to have the case postponed but confirmed to court that Gachagua had proposed to have the case settled out of court.
“Indeed this matter has taken a twist. The negotiations are going on. We can confirm that the intended out of court settlement was indicated on Monday by Gachagua’s lawyer,” Owour stated.
The judge allowed Gachagua’s request to grant the parties more time to conclude the out-of-court negotiations and file a consent in court before the next hearing dates on October 30 and 31.
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In the case, Gachagua has petitioned Milimani Environment Lands Court seeking to recover the land in Embakasi which, he claims, had been fraudulently acquired by Ohas, a former official at the Ministry of Lands.
