Nairobi — Keroche Breweries has filed contempt application against the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the agency's Commissioner General Githii Mburu for disregarding a High Court order to re-open its alcohol processing plant.
The brewer, through H&K law advocates, filed the application at the High Court on Friday seeking the arrest of Mburu for contempt of court.
On July 14, the High Court Judge Alfred Mabeya issued an order directing KRA to reopen the brewer but the tax agency moved to court on July 18 to seek an order to stop the reopening.
According to Keroche's lawyers, Lady Justice Abigael Mshilla did not certify KRA's application not to reopen the brewer and no orders were issued regarding the said application.
"Notwithstanding the orders issued Lady Justice Mshilla, the respondent (KRA) is yet to comply with the orders of the court issued by Justice Mabeya on July 14, 2022 which have not been set aside and/or stayed," the court documents read.
KRA shut Keroche Breweries on May 15 after the Naivasha-based brewer failed to honour a tax repayment plan that would have seen it settle Sh957 million shillings in 24 months.
In its defence, Keroche said it was unable to honour the payment schedule given the tough operating environment and the short-run to the payment of the first installment covering the tax arrears.
The lawyers noted that with the plant remaining closed, Keroche risks losses which include but are not limited to 87,500 litres of beer, filtered and ready for packaging at the factory and 1,250,000 litres of beer that is ready for filtration and packaging worth Sh350million.
Other forecast losses include raw materials among them malted barley, sorghum, accrued interest from loans advanced to them by banks and loss of market share and distribution network.
The brewer asked the court to certify the application as urgent to ensure expeditious determination.
"The Applicant(Keroche) is apprehensive that if this application is not heard on a priority basis, the respondent will continue to deliberately ignore and/or neglect the orders of the court occasioning the Applicant losses as particularized," Keroche told the court.
