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Uncertainty of Safari rally as court cancels KMSF deal with FIA

Court said the January 25 agreement was in defiance of a court order that barred Muturi from managing the affairs of the federation

The World Safari Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally has been thrown into uncertainty after the High Court nullified the agreement between Kenya Motor Sports Federation (KMSF) and the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA).

In her ruling, Milimani Senior Principal Magistrate Anne Nyoike stated that the Safari Rally organising agreement has no legal standing  as the KMSF chairman Maina Muturi, who signed on behalf of KMSF, was suspended.

“The agreement executed by the respondent is null and void for lack of legal basis. ,” she ruled.

The magistrate said the January 25 agreement was in defiance of a court order that barred Muturi from managing the affairs of the federation.

She added that the suspended chairman is held in contempt of court as she gave him seven days to explain why he should not be jailed for contempt of court.

He is expected to appear in court next week Tuesday over the same.

“As a result, I find the agreement executed by the respondent to be null and void for lack of legal basis. The application is in essence allowed and the respondent is hereby held to be in contempt of court,” Nyoike ruled.

According to Nyoike, the suspended Chairman engaged in affairs of KMSF while he had been prohibited.

The court noted that Muturi did not dispute the orders against him as he failed to provide evidence that he executed the agreement in any other capacity and not on behalf of the federation.

“The respondent does not dispute that he executed this agreement, he contends that the applicant is not Kenya Motor Sports but one of the Directors who has allegedly usurped the corporate identity of the applicant to prosecute his case against the respondent (Muturi)” Nyoike said.

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Muturi was barred from involving himself in the federation management pending a determination of the case  filed by a director at KMSF, James Kahumbura last December.

However, in January, he signed the agreement with FIA on behalf of the federation without its authority.

In his submission, the Chairman told the court that the petitioner did not file on behalf of KMSF but had chosen to usurp the corporate identity of the federation.

He said together with the other directors they are in the process of securing registration of the federation under the Sports Act, a process that was within the mandate of the ministry of Sports and the Registrar of Companies.

The ruling comes as the World Safari Rally event is scheduled between tomorrow and Saturday.

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