Rift Valley politician Zedekiah Bundotich, popularly referred to Buzeki, is at the center of a Ksh2.7 billion debt suit pitting two companies against each other.
According to a report by the Business Daily on Tuesday, July 28, a suit filed by a local bank against a planned auction of part of Buzeki's property revealed that the politician owed the bank Ksh2.7 billion.
In 2019 Landmark Port Conveyors Ltd was given the go-ahead by the High Court to auction 53 trucks owned by Buzeki Enterprises, a company associated with the politician to recover a Ksh118 million debt.
In an appeal, the bank argued that the trucks were among 289 trucks that were used by Buzeki Enterprises as security for the loan noting that if they get auctioned, the lender would lose the security.
In their ruling, Justices Roselyn Nambuye, Hannah Okwengu and Daniel Musinga noted on Friday, July 25, that the argument by the bank was merited.
“If the properties are sold, and the bank succeeds in its appeal, the appeal may be rendered nugatory as the bank will have already lost the securities for the amount loaned to Buzeki,” they stated.
Buzeki Enterprises had argued in 2019 that it would lose business if there vehicles were auctioned or continued being held by the auctioneers.
The three judges, hence, ruled that the trucks were to remain under attachment but lifted their sale ordering the bank to deposit Ksh60 million in an interest-earning account within 30 days.
Buzeki Enterprises had entered into a deal with Landmark in 2015 to purchase two parcels of land valued at Ksh340 million in Mombasa.
Bundotich is the founder of Buzeki Enterprises that was specialising in transport services and dairy products but he sold the milk production arm to the Kenyatta family.
He unsuccessfully vied for the Uasin Gishu gubernatorial seat in 2017.
