NAIROBI, July 3, 2025 — The High Court in Nairobi, on June 27, 2025, dismissed an appeal by the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) and journalists Luke Anami, Nicholas Omondi, Grace Matengo, and Martin Kingasia, upholding a Ksh 3.5 million defamation award to William Kimutai Keitany, former acting Corporation Secretary at the National Housing Corporation (NHC). Justice Asenath Ongeri affirmed the trial court’s 2020 ruling, finding the appellants liable for broadcasting false claims about Keitany’s dismissal in a housing scandal.
The case arose from a 2012 KBC broadcast, based on an article authored by Luke Anami, a journalist employed by the Standard Group Limited, titled “National Housing MD Fired.” The broadcast alleged that Keitany, alongside other NHC officials, was sacked for corruptly allocating multiple housing units to himself. The article quoted then-Housing Minister Soita Shitanda, stating, “Three Managers including an Estate Officer Lilian Muinde, Company Secretary Elizabeth Mbugua and Senior Legal Officer William Keitany have instead been shown the door following allegations of allocating more than one unit to themselves”. It further claimed, “It is immoral to allocate yourself more than one unit when other applicants have none,” accusing NHC management of “apparent weakness” in housing policy compliance.
Keitany, who was not contacted before publication, testified that the broadcast led to calls from his wife and others, causing him social ostracization and preventing him from visiting his village for an extended period. The trial court found the statements defamatory, awarding Ksh 1.5 million in general damages, Ksh 500,000 in exemplary damages, and Ksh 1 million in aggravated damages against each appellant, totaling Ksh 3.5 million per defendant.
The appellants argued the broadcast was a fair report of Shitanda’s press conference, protected as a matter of public interest under Articles 33 and 34 of the 2010 Constitution. They claimed the publication was made in good faith, without malice, and covered by qualified privilege. However, Justice Ongeri rejected these defenses, stating, “The Appellants admitted during cross-examination that they did not seek the Respondent’s side of the story, rendering their defence of ‘fair comment’ untenable”. She added, “The reckless publication without verification or balancing the story demonstrated malice and negligence”.
Ongeri emphasized that the statements “unequivocally defamatory” as they “imputed dishonesty and abuse of office, exposing the Respondent to public hatred, contempt, and ridicule”. She cited Rookes v. Barnard (1964) and Sim v. Stretch (1936) to affirm that the broadcast lowered Keitany’s reputation among right-thinking members of society. The appellants’ failure to verify facts or offer Keitany a right of reply violated journalistic ethics under the Media Council Act and judicial precedents like Nation Media Group v. John Joseph Kamotho (2010).
The appellants challenged the Ksh 3.5 million award as excessive, noting Keitany’s later promotion and acquittal in related criminal charges. However, Ongeri upheld the damages, citing Simeon Nyachae v. Lazurus Ratemo Musa (2013), where Ksh 3 million was awarded, and WM v. Standard Group Limited (2018), which granted Ksh 5 million (web:0). She stated, “Exemplary and aggravated damages were warranted due to the Appellants’ unrepentant conduct and failure to retract the falsehoods” (web:0). Keitany’s evidence of social and professional harm, including community alienation, justified the award (web:0).
The court dismissed the appeal, finding that Keitany proved the publication’s falsity, its reference to him, and its defamatory nature to third parties. The appellants were ordered to bear the appeal’s costs jointly and severally .