MP Murugara files petition to challenge revocation of administrative units in Tharaka-Nithi
By Gerald Mukembu
Tharaka MP Gitonga Murugara, alongside four MCAs and three other residents of Tharaka-Nithi County, has filed an enjoinder petition disputing the revocation of newly established gazetted administrative units that border Meru County.
The petitioners have requested the High Court to recognize them as interested parties in the case, arguing that the revocation would strip them of the benefits associated with the new administrative units.
Local politician Paul Mugambi has also voiced his opposition to the proposed revocation, stating that it threatens the heritage of the Tharaka people.
In December of the previous year, five residents, represented by their advocate Francis Mawira, approached the High Court before Judge Esbon Nyaga.
They requested court orders to halt the implementation of Gazette Notices No. 1766, dated February 14, 2024, and No. 15341, dated November 22, 2024.
The plaintiffs—Sebastian Kaaria, Jonah Mwenda, Joseph Muriungi, Severino Maitima, and Alex Mugambi—filed their lawsuit against the Attorney General, as well as the Cabinet Secretaries for Interior, Lands, Education, and Health.
The residents are demanding the immediate revocation of the gazette notices pertaining to the formation of sub-locations, locations, and sub-counties.
Additionally, they have named the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and Nithi Water and Sanitation Company as respondents in the case.
The Meru residents are seeking to suspend the operationalization of Kibung’a Sub-Location, the Kibung’a headquarters of Tharaka West Subcounty, Kithino Location in Chiakariga Subcounty, as well as Uragate Division and Uragate Sub-Location in Tharaka North Sub-County.
In response to the ongoing legal battle, MP Murugara urged his constituents to remain calm while awaiting the court’s decision. He emphasized that the case does not pertain to border disputes between Meru and Tharaka-Nithi or any land-related issues.
