Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) has defended the Sh12 billion Riruta-Ngong commuter metre gauge railway project, arguing that it complied with all legal and procedural requirements.
In submissions filed in court, KRC urged the court to dismiss a petition filed by Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah and the Karen Langata District Association, saying the project was implemented within the law and subjected to oversight at every stage.
“At every stage, the process was subject to audit, oversight and statutory controls. There is therefore no evidential basis for the allegation that the projects are hidden, irregular, or outside constitutional governance structures,” KRC said.
The Riruta-Ngong MGR line was commissioned in December 2023. Mr Omtatah and the association contend that funds from the Railway Development Levy Fund (RDLF) were used unconstitutionally to finance the construction and implementation of the project.
KRC, however, argued that the petition is based on a legal framework that has since been amended, adding that the changes addressed the concerns raised by the petitioners.
“Furthermore, the Riruta-Ngong Commuter Meter Gauge Project is a railway infrastructure project and thus, the implementation and construction of such a project using funds from RDLF goes hand-in-glove with the purposes of the RDLF as outlined under Section 8(3)(a)-(c) of the Miscellaneous Fees and Levies (Amendment) Act, 2026,” KRC said.
Mr Omtatah, however, maintained that the project commenced long before the amendment came into force on March 27, 2026.
At the time, he said, Section 8(3) of the principal Act restricted the use of the fund to the construction and operation of the Standard Gauge Railway network.
The senator further argued that the 2026 amendment does not contain any express retrospective provision validating expenditure incurred before its enactment.
“Consequently, any application of RDLF funds towards the project was unconstitutional, unlawful and without statutory authority,” he said.
Mr Omtatah also argued that the project was undertaken in blatant violation of laws governing public investment in Kenya.
He submitted that no feasibility study was conducted for the railway line as required under the relevant regulations. He further argued that the government’s failure to produce a pre-feasibility study, despite a direct court order, demonstrates either that no such study exists or that the project proceeded in fundamental breach of mandatory public investment requirements.
Mr Omtatah said a feasibility study for a mega project is not optional.
“It is a mandatory statutory condition precedent to project approval, financing, procurement and budgetary allocation. The public investment management framework expressly prohibits an accounting officer from seeking approval or budgetary allocation for a public project unless the prescribed feasibility requirement have first been complied with and approved in accordance with the law,” he said.
The case was adjourned to June 9.
