Jillo Kadida
4 July 2008
Nairobi — A receiver manager has gone to court seeking to block the transfer of the controversy-hit Grand Regency Hotel.
Mr Hezekiah Gichohi wants the transfer stopped because he says the hotel owes him Sh34 million.
Mr Gichohi says the decision by the Central Bank of Kenya to secretly transfer the hotel will interfere with his right to the money.
He believes that the transfer of the hotel is illegal and should be stopped.
The hotel is at the centre of corruption allegations and so public interest compels the court to restrain Libyan Arab African Investment from interfering with it, he argues.
Given his involvement in the preservation of the hotel for the last five years, he said, he is qualified to act in the matter as a public agent.
Mr Gichohi is a certified public accountant and was appointed as one of the joint receiver managers of the hotel in June 2003 by the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission.
The other receiver manager was Mr Peter Ndaa who was appointed by Uhuru Highway Development Ltd.
The two were appointed following a court order in a case involving ownership of the hotel.
The remuneration of the receiver managers was set at Sh400,000 each.
However in April 2008, Mr Gichohi said, he learnt that businessman Kamlesh Pattni and the KACC were transferring ownership of the hotel to CBK.
Soon after this, both receiver managers were discharged by court.
He said CBK governor Njuguna Ndung'u made serious allegations in public that the hotel was a milk cow for those managing it.
Made profit
This, he said, insinuated that the hotel was making losses during his stewardship, when in fact it made a profit of Sh143 million up to December 2007.
Mr Gichohi also told the court that early this year the Uhuru Highway Development and CBK clandestinely began a valuation of the hotel. Under normal circumstances, he said, such valuation ought to be done with the knowledge of the receiver managers.
In his suit papers filed under a certificate of urgency, Mr Gichohi has listed Uhuru Highway Development Ltd, Central Bank of Kenya and Libyan Arab African Investment and the Grand Regency Hotel as defendants.
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