Ex-nominated Senator Gloria Orwoba has been ordered to pay Senate Clerk Jeremiah Nyegenye Ksh10.5 million in damages after being found guilty of defaming him.
The judgment was delivered by Magistrate Ruguru Ngotho on Monday, as the Milimani Commercial Court found Orwoba guilty of sharing malicious posts on her WhatsApp stories, Facebook page, and X, accusing the Senate Clerk of sexual harassment.
In the judgment, the court also found that Orwoba's posts were not protected by parliamentary privilege and were made with malicious intent to damage Nyegenye's reputation.
Consequently, Nyegenye was awarded Ksh8 million in general damages and Ksh2.5 million in exemplary and aggravated damages.
Further, Orwoba is also required to issue a public apology within 30 days , failure to which she will be required to pay an additional Ksh1 million in default damages.
An injunction was also issued on Monday, barring Orwoba or any of her associates from publishing any further defamatory comments against the clerk.
The former nominated Senator's woes date back to 2023, when she posted on her Facebook page damaging claims against the Senate Clerk, accusing him of retaliating after she refused his sexual advances.
“Clerk of the Senate Jeremiah Nyegenye solicited for sexual favours from me… and once I refused… the retaliation began," Orwoba said in the explosive comments.
What ensued was a legal arm-wrestle, as Nyegenye , through his legal team, asked Orwoba to retract her statements. Orwoba was subsequently restrained from making any further defamatory statements against Clerk of the Senate.
In the ruling on Monday, the court found that Orwoba failed to substantiate the allegations, turning the issue to a case of libel.
“It was incumbent upon her to go the extra mile to justify her statements. She did not," the magistrate observed.
Nyengene's lawyer also testified, claiming that the allegations had cauused severe mental anguish to the Senate clerk and his family over the years.
