By Court reporter
Kenya Roads Board Chairperson Aisha Jumwa has filed a suit seeking to block the circulation of a nine-year-old video clip in which she is allegedly heard hurling unprintable epithets at a journalist.
Ms Jumwa has sued political activists Idd Salim alias Kamanda and Matano Maingi, whom she accuses of widely disseminating the recording they allegedly received from journalist Renson Kombe Yeri, who is said to have recorded the insults during a telephone conversation with Ms Jumwa in 2016.
She claims that the two activists are circulating the said video recording on their WhatsApp and Facebook accounts to members of the public.
The former Malindi Member of Parliament, who believes she is a front runner in the Kilifi gubernatorial contest in the 2027 General Elections, claims that the clip is damaging her political aspirations by portraying her negatively in the eyes of the electorate.
Ms Jumwa, in an affidavit, said she uttered the words in retaliation for similar words uttered against her by Mr. Kombe, who she accuses of selectively recording the conversation for political expediency.
“It has become so notorious, extraordinary, unbearable and uncontrollable on the part of the 1st and 2nd respondents that they are maliciously playing, circulating sharing and publishing the said videos whenever they become aware that I am preparing to hold meet-the-people public meetings,” she says in part.
She claims that the two are doing so with the sole purpose of portraying her as a busybody who engages in abusing people with the use of obscene and abusing words and therefore passing a message to the members of the public that she has no manners and does not deserve to be elected governor of Kilifi County in the 2027 General Election.
Jumwa’s legal counsel Alfred Omwancha, certified the application as extremely urgent and urged the court to issue temporary orders stopping the circulation of the recording until the matter is heard and determined.
“If the said playing, circulation, posting, sharing and publishing the videos is not stopped by an order of this honourbale court, the plaintiff/applicant will suffer irreparable loss and damage as members of the public are being misled to understand and believe that the recording is recent,” he says.
However, Ms Jumwa suffered a blow when Malindi Principal Magistrate Joy Wesonga on Wednesday declined to grant the temporary orders sought, but listed the matter for inter parte hearing on Wednesday September 10, 2025.
Ms Jumwa had on August 13, 2025 suffered another blow when Resident Magistrate Irene Tamara, who heard the initial application, declined to certify the matter as urgent and ordered the application to be served for inter partes hearing before Ms Wesonga’s court on September 3, 2025.
“It is hereby ordered that there is no urgency in the application and application should be served for inter partes hearing on September 3, 2025 court No. 3,” she said.
On Wednesday, the defendants’ lawyer, Ms. Lucky Minyazi, asked the court during a virtual court session to give her three days to file replying affidavits, which Ms Wesonga granted and listed the matter for hearing on Wednesday September 10, 2025.
Immediately after the Wednesday virtual court session, supporters of Governor Mung’aro accused Ms Jumwa of attempting to use the courts to muzzle her critics and vowed to stand with the three individuals sued by Ms Jumwa, who also served as Kilifi Woman Representative.
They claimed that Jumwa had a reputation of using abusive language against her perceived critics, a habit that had demeaned her status as a leader.
In 2021, then Malindi Resident Judge Reuben Nyakundi granted Ms Jumwa a temporary injunction stopping the playing and publishing of the offensive clip, but the case was later dismissed after Jumwa’s lawyers failed to prosecute it.
