Three judges withdraw from case on management of Mombasa port

Three Court of Appeal judges in Mombasa have recused themselves from a case seeking a determination on whether a petition challenging the management of the Mombasa Port should be heard by the court or a special inter-governmental committee.

This was after the Mombasa County Government, through lawyer Pheroze Nowrojee, asked the three judges — Wanjiru Karanja, Alnasir Visram and Martha Koome — to withdraw from the case on grounds that the county administration was dissatisfied with a previous ruling on management of Kenya Ferry Services.

The three judges now want Chief Justice David Maraga to constitute another bench either in Nairobi or Mombasa to hear the case.

The matter moved to the Court of Appeal after a five-judge bench of the High Court ruled that the case on management of the Mombasa Port should be determined by the court and not a special committee.

Three residents of Mombasa — William Ramogi, Asha Omar and Gerald Kithi — filed a petition seeking to have management of the port of Mombasa handed to the county government.

The petitioners have listed the Attorney-General, the Cabinet Secretary in charge of Transport and Infrastructure, Kenya Ports Authority and the Kenya Railways Corporation as respondents.