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NAIROBI Governor Evans Kidero (above) has sued international audit firm KPMG for linking him to the loss of Sh1.2 billion at Mumias Sugar Company.
In a defamation suit filed at the High Court on Wednesday, he said the report by KPMG was driven by malice.
The July 8, 2014, report lists the governor as among individuals behind the huge losses at MSC.
Kidero was the company’s chief executive officer for 10 years.
It alleges Kidero ignored numerous calls by auditors and the company’s board of directors to seal corruption loopholes that bedeviled the sugar miller.
Kidero dismissed the report, saying it has tainted his image and caused him great distress.
He said it portrays him as a corrupt person who lacks integrity, a scheming conspirator, a white collar criminal, delinquent, a swindler, fraudster and a person who does not deserve to hold public office.
Through lawyer Tom Ojienda, Kidero wants the court to enter judgement against KPMG for specified general and aggravated damages.
Ojienda is also seeking to have KPMG restrained from further publishing remarks concerning Kidero and management of MSC.
“KPMG continues to engage in bad publicity, character assassination and incitement of public spite against my client,” he said.
He said the defamatory words against Kidero are “malicious, false, reckless and beyond the frontiers of the freedom of expression”.
Eric Aholi, Charles Appleton, Brian Pringle, Josephat Mwaura, Jacob Gathecha, Joseph Kariuki, Benson Ndungu and John Ndunyu – all from KPMG – have been named as respondents in the suit.
Kidero wants the court to compel the nine to publicly apologise to him and retract their corruption claims against him.
He said they were driven by malice while naming him, and their move was a continuation of calculated persistent and unjustified attack.
Kidero said unless the audit firm is restrained by the court from further defaming him, his reputation will be “irretrievably tainted, blemished and lowered in the estimation of right thinking members of the public”.
The governor said he will suffer irreparable loss.
– See more at: The Star
