NAIROBI, Kenya, July 21 – The fate of proposed developments in Upper Imenti Forest will be determined on July 30 when the High Court rules on an application seeking to suspend plans for an airstrip, State Lodge, golf course and road expansion.

📻 Breaking It Down

The court will decide on the applications pending the hearing of a constitutional challenge over the projects and amendments to the Forest Conservation and Management Act.

The ruling date was set after parties filed their written submissions, with the National Assembly urging the court to dismiss the application for conservatory orders, arguing the petition is speculative and unsupported by evidence, while the petitioner insists government agencies are already evaluating the contested projects, making the threat to the forest real and imminent.

In its submissions, the National Assembly argued that the petitioners had failed to satisfy the legal threshold for the grant of conservatory orders, maintaining that no decision has been made to excise, allocate, license or authorize any development within Upper Imenti Forest.

📌 What You Need to Know

It told the court that the petition is founded on speculation rather than fact, asserting that there is no evidence the government has approved or commenced construction of the proposed Kithoka Airstrip, State Lodge, golf course, Meru Bypass extension or any related infrastructure within the forest.

The National Assembly further submitted that the petition relies largely on newspaper reports and social media posts, which it argued amount to hearsay and carry little evidentiary value.

It also defended the contested amendment to Section 56(2) of the Forest Conservation and Management Act, arguing that the provision merely creates a legal framework for easements relating to public roads and public utilities and does not authorize the projects identified by the petitioners.

According to the National Assembly, issuing conservatory orders at this stage would unnecessarily interfere with Parliament’s constitutional mandate to legislate and could delay critical public infrastructure projects, contrary to the public interest.

However, petitioner Francis Awino urged the court to reject those arguments, saying the respondents had effectively acknowledged that government agencies are considering proposals for an airstrip, State Lodge, golf course and the extension of the Meru Bypass Road near Upper Imenti Forest.

In a supplementary affidavit, Awino argued that the respondents’ own filings demonstrate that the proposed developments are under active consideration, undermining claims that the petition is speculative.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya