The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, ODPP, has withdrawn the application made on Wednesday seeking to drop graft charges against former Samburu Governor Mosel Lenolkulal.
The Principal State Counsel at the ODPP, Alexander Muteti, told the court Friday that the decision to withdraw the application arrived after consultations with the DPP Noordin Haji.
The U-turn means the case will proceed as previously scheduled, with the last witness expected to testify on January 23, 2023.
Read: LSK To Sue DPP For Withdrawing Graft Cases
Lenolkulal is accused of irregularly awarding his company Oryx Service Station the tender to supply petrol and diesel to the county, consequently receiving a Ksh. 84.6 million payment.
The move by the prosecution comes a day after the Law Society of Kenya, through Chairperson Erick Theuri, put into question the DPP’s decision to drop a number of corruption cases over lack of evidence.
The society called upon Haji to make public pronouncements on the matter, failure to which it could take legal action against him.
Read: How To Report Corruption In Kenya
“If the cases are being withdrawn for lack of evidence to sustain the charges, the DPP must take responsibility and explain how the decision to charge was arrived at in the first instance,” said Theuri.
Other high-profile corruption cases dropped by the prosecution this week alone over lack of evidence are those of Gender Cabinet Secretary nominee Aisha Jumwa, Ksh. 19 million, and former Kenya Power managing director Ben Chumo, Ksh. 400 million.
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