A Kenyan court, on Thursday, turned heat on Nandi Governor Stephen Sang in connection with a defamation suit filed by his Mombasa counterpart Hassan Joho.
Justice Lucy Njuguna gave the governor a maximum of 14 days to respond to the lawsuit that he was mentioned as a respondent alongside MPs Oscar Sudi(Kapseret), Kimani Ichung’wah (Kikuyu) and Didmus Barasa (Kiminini).
The warning was given to Sang after he failed to record a statement with the judge revealing that if he failed again, she would be forced to make a ruling in his absence.
“Should Sang fail to enter an appearance within the time mentioned, the plaintiff may proceed with the suit and judgment maybe given in his absence,” ruled Njuguna.
In his defence, Sang asked the court for more time in order to compile compelling evidence.
Through his lawyer, the governor argued that he was yet to acquire information from government agencies on a controversial ship that was blown up at the Indian Ocean in 2014.
He further added that the information about the ship that reportedly contained heroin was crucial when forming his defence.
“We have written a letter to Interpol and DCI seeking information. We are at a disadvantaged position since we have no information we want to rely on,” the lawyer told the court.
Joho filed the suit against the other leaders arguing that they disparaged his reputation by spreading lies that he was a drug trafficker.
He claimed that he had never been convicted, or even arrested, for drug trafficking both locally and internationally.