Kituo cha Sheria’s board chairman Justus Munyithya
Kituo Cha Sheria’s chairman Justus Munyithya’s dirty linen started getting aired during a case where Safaricom sued Elon Musk’s Starlink to be denied an operation license in the Kenyan market as it threatened Safaricom’s dominance in the market for internet provision. Safaricom sponsored Kituo Cha Sheria as an interested proxy party to back up Safaricom’s lawsuit.
Before the train could leave the station, a company associated with a wealthy city lawyer sought to join the case seeking to stop Safaricom and industry regulator from blocking Starlink from entering the Kenyan market by providing satellite internet services.
Goodweek Inter-Services Limited was enjoined in the case filed by Kituo Cha Sheria as an interested party.
According to the dealer, the case had been filed with the sole and impermissible purpose of corrupting the commercial and regulatory landscape and retaining and sustaining an altogether impermissible monopolistic control of the telecommunication market in Kenya by Safaricom.
“This is what happened to Equity Bank’s thin-sim-card revolutionary technology that was going to obliterate Mpesa. Kituo was conscripted by Safaricom to lodge a surrogate suit to block the introduction of Equity Bank’s revolutionary technology with Kituo deploying Stalingrad tactics to delay the implementation of the said technology for more than a year for the benefit of Safaricom,” said Goodweek Inter-Services ltd in court documents.
“The details of this unholy alliance between Safaricom and Kituo are detailed in a prior suit before this Court being Constitutional Human Rights Division Petition No. E299 of 2024 Goodweek Inter-Services Limited vs Safaricom PLC & 3 Others which was filed on 21st June 2024, way before the current suit,” the firm said.
Corruption And Unfair dismissals.
On December 31, 2024, Mwariri and board chairman Justus Munyithya, who also lectures at the Kenya School of Law, dismissed five senior officers who had served the organization for over two decades under questionable circumstances. Sources claim that these dismissals were part of a broader strategy where Mwariri allegedly replaced long-serving staff with individuals from KSL, referred to derogatorily as “slay queens,” suggesting favoritism based on personal relationships rather than merit.
Further allegations surfaced concerning the termination of contracts for 18 staff members in late 2023 and April 2024. These terminations reportedly lacked legal justification, proper notification, or adequate compensation, contravening both organizational policy and legal standards.
In response, some of the affected employees have threatened legal action to challenge their dismissals. They argue that the recruitment of new staff focuses on personal connections rather than professional qualifications, despite the official reason for terminations being cited as a lack of funds.
The staff whose contracts were terminated have appealed to the board, but their pleas have gone unanswered, a particularly disturbing situation for an institution that champions human rights. This has instilled a climate of fear among the remaining employees, who are apprehensive about their job security.
The tension culminated in a demonstration by paralegals and community members associated with Kituo Cha Sheria, leading to their arrest at Kilimani Police Station. They were later released after their concerns were heard by the police.
These incidents of mismanagement have fueled allegations of conflict of interest among board members, who are accused of handling cases for the organization while potentially misusing donor funds for personal gain. Additionally, there are claims of discriminatory practices affecting staff salaries, which could be subject to further investigation.
This situation at Kituo Cha Sheria highlights a critical need for civil society organizations to uphold the same standards of transparency, accountability, and justice that they advocate for in governmental entities. Such organizations must lead by example, ensuring their operations reflect the principles they promote.
Kituo Cha Sheria’s leadership needs a total overhaul and restructuring and prosecutions of corrupt officials.
