In a major legal victory for Sirisia MP John Waluke, the Court of Appeal has overturned his conviction and quashed the 67-year prison sentence he had been handed in relation to the Sh313 million maize scandal.
Waluke’s business associate, Grace Wakhungu, who had faced a 69-year jail term, was also exonerated in the same ruling.
The appellate court presided over by Justices Asike Makhandia and Patrick Kiage, delivered the judgement with a stern critique of the lower court's handling of the case.
“We are satisfied that the appellants have made a case to warrant us to allow their appeal. Their conviction and sentence are set aside. The appellants shall immediately be set free unless otherwise lawfully held," the judges declared.
Waluke and Wakhungu, both directors of Erad Supplies Limited, were convicted in 2020 by Magistrate Elizabeth Juma after being found guilty of uttering false documents and unlawfully acquiring public funds.
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The charges stemmed from their alleged fraudulent acquisition of Sh313 million, purportedly for the storage of 40,000 metric tonnes of white maize by Chelsea Freights.
The pair had the option of a Sh1 billion fine, but they opted to appeal the conviction and sentencing. However, in an earlier ruling, High Court Judge Esther Maina had upheld their sentences, stating that they were lawful.
"Waluke presented to the arbitrator knowing Erad Supplies Limited had no deal with the maker of the invoice – Chelsea Freight Limited – and as a result, it was paid huge sums of money by a public body," Judge Maina had said at the time, further declaring the invoice to be a forgery.
Despite this setback, Waluke and Wakhungu took their fight to the Court of Appeal, which ultimately found that the lower courts had failed to properly reassess the evidence.
The appellate judges criticised the High Court for neglecting its duty to reanalyse the case in full, as is required by law when hearing a first appeal.
"A proper re-evaluation of the evidence would have revealed that there was no evidence that Waluke received money in all the charges relating to the acquisition of public property since the money had only been deposited with the advocates of the company," the judges remarked.
They further noted that the sums mentioned in the charge sheet were specific and required individual proof, which had not been provided.
The charges against Waluke included claims of falsifying an invoice worth Sh114.6 million to support a maize storage claim and fraudulently obtaining Sh297 million from the public.
However, Justices Makhandia and Kiage ruled that even if the false document charge had been proven, it did not automatically mean that the other offences had occurred.
In their defence, Waluke and Wakhungu had maintained that the Sh313 million paid to them was lawfully awarded following an arbitration process.
Their company, Erad Supplies, had won a contract to supply maize to the government in 2004, but the deal fell through after the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) failed to issue a letter of credit, leading to a breach of contract.
The dispute was settled through arbitration, with Erad receiving damages, a decision later upheld by the High Court.
Wakhungu argued in her appeal that the payments could not form the basis of a criminal charge, as they had been lawfully awarded following the arbitration.
The Court of Appeal appeared to agree, criticising the NCPB's subsequent referral of the matter to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
"This appears to us as the worst form of abuse of the criminal process. It was obviously undertaken for ulterior motives, not for genuine vindication of any rights," the judges concluded.
With the Court of Appeal's ruling, both Waluke and Wakhungu now walk free, bringing an end to the lengthy legal battle over the controversial maize deal.
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