A Chinese company operating in Kenya has been ordered to pay Ksh10 million to a member of the National Assembly following an accident on Thika Superhighway.
Kangema MP Muturi Kigano was involved in a road accident in 2011 and sustained injuries including scalp injuries, fracture of skull and sensorineural hearing loss.
The court concluded that the company, Shegli Engineering Construction Group Ltd, was liable as it had failed to care for road users during the construction.
The company was undertaking road works in conjunction with the Ministry of Transport and the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA).
"If the defendant left, the duty of care was solely on the part of the employer (Ministry of Roads), It would have as well taken out a third-party proceedings, but the defendant failed to do so," ruled the judge according to Daily Nation.
The judge further noted that the duty of care as bestowed on KeNHA was not non-delegable explaining that the company could not avoid it.
The MP was, as a result, awarded Ksh2 million in special damages and Ksh8 million for suffering.
In court, the lawmaker provided a P3 form that linked the injuries to the accident and backed it up with medical records.
The accident occurred on March 8, 2011, as the legislator was driving his car and found the road closed with murram.
He argued that there were no warning signs and that there were concrete slabs and a deviation.
He said that he applied brakes, but the deviation was sudden prompting him to roll several times before landing on the other side of the road.
The wreckage from the vehicle crashed into him and was rescued by well-wishers who took him to Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) clinic.
