Okiya Omtatah Withdraws Eurobond Petition Against Uhuru, Ruto, Plans to Refile
Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has formally withdrawn a longstanding legal petition filed in 2015 against former President Uhuru Kenyatta and current President William Ruto over the controversial Eurobond deal.
In a statement issued on Thursday, April 24, Omtatah explained that the decision to withdraw the petition was based on tactical considerations following technical objections raised in court.
“After consultations and given the technical objections raised by the court, it has become untenable to proceed with this petition in the manner that it was. So we have withdrawn it tactically to avoid the cascading disaster that was before us,” said Omtatah.
Despite the withdrawal, the Senator made it clear that the legal battle is far from over. He insisted that Kenya still has “no debt” and confirmed that the petition would be refiled immediately—this time avoiding the technical hurdles that led to the initial withdrawal.
“However, we are going to refile the same immediately so that we can avoid all those technicalities that were being placed in our way like minefields,” he added.
The original petition, filed in 2015 by Omtatah and Nyakina Wycliffe, accused Kenyatta and Ruto of violating various laws concerning the handling of proceeds from the Eurobond raised that year. The case revolved around allegations that a portion of the funds was misappropriated and deposited in offshore accounts, in breach of the Constitution and the Public Finance Management Act of 2012.
“It is their case that the above-mentioned money was raised for the 2014/15 fiscal year and that USD2 billion of that amount was borrowed for infrastructure development and to repay a syndicated loan owed by the Government in December 2014,” read part of the initial petition.
The petitioners further alleged that an additional USD750 million obtained via Eurobond “Tap Sales” in December 2014 was meant for infrastructure projects but was mishandled.
“They aver that the funds were illegally and unlawfully deposited in an offshore account instead of being deposited into the Consolidated Fund as required by the Constitution and the Public Finance Act,” the court filing stated.
They also claimed the offshore account was not authorized by the Controller of Budget, thereby violating Kenya’s public finance laws.
Senator Omtatah has built a reputation for championing public interest litigation, and his renewed commitment to the case signals continued scrutiny over Kenya’s public debt and financial accountability.
