Tiomin wants Sh200 million suit cost from farmers
Published by MAC on 2007-02-14
Tiomin wants Sh200 million suit cost from farmers
by The Nation, Kenya
14th February 2007
Litigation can be costly.
This is the lesson for eight Kwale farmers, who went to court last year challenging the Government's move to acquire their land for titanium mining.
Tiomin Kenya Limited, a party to the suit, has requested the High Court to order the farmers to pay it Sh200 million approximately 1.8 million pounds sterling] as the cost of litigation.
The company wants the payment after the eight farmers lost in their bid last December to stop the Canadian firm from extracting the mineral.
In a suit before Mr Justice Joseph Nyamu yesterday, Tiomin Kenya Limited is demanding the amount on grounds that orders issued against it last November affected its operation. The orders for injunction were later quashed.
Last December, after a full hearing, Mr Justice Nyamu dismissed the suit filed by the farmers and ordered them to pay costs to Tiomin Kenya Limited and other respondents. On the cost of litigation, the Canadian firm argues that orders barring mining that were later lifted, resulted in losses.
At the time the injunction was issued, the firm had moved heavy machinery in Maumba and Nguluku in readiness for the first phase of mining.
Tiomin Kenya says the eight farmers, led by Mr Rodgers Muema Nzioka, had filed the suit with a view to killing the multi-billion-shilling project.
Entitled to pay
However, through lawyer Gibson Kamau Kuria, the farmers have raised a preliminary objection arguing that they were not entitled to pay Tiomin Kenya Limited any amount. They argued further that no certificate of cost had been issued so far by the court.
However, Tiomin Kenya's ability to get this amount appears remote, considering that the only asset the farmers had was their land, which is valued at Sh20 million.
Further, the farmers claim the cost demanded by Tiomin Kenya was likely to contravene their fundamental rights.
Mr Justice Nyamu adjourned that case to allow the parties to research on the issue. The case will be mentioned in 21 days time.
Last December, Justice Nyamu ruled that the Government was justified in forcibly taking over land to allow for titanium mining.