Court orders FKF to settle salary arrears of 15 former employees at Ksh 15 Million

In a decisive legal ruling, Justice Byram Ongaya has decreed that the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) must pay a total of close to Ksh 15 million in salary arrears to 15 of its former employees.

This judicial decision comes as a culmination of a long-standing dispute dating back to 2016 when the football governing body failed to compensate these individuals for their services. FKF's attempt to argue that these employees had abandoned their duties since February 13, 2016, was rebuffed by the court.

Justice Byrum Ongaya, presiding over the case, asserted that there was no substantiated evidence presented by FKF demonstrating that the arrears dating to 2016 were ever disbursed to the former employees. As a result, the judge has mandated that the outstanding amounts be paid by FKF no later than December 1.

The FKF had adamantly contended that Michael Esakwa and the other 14 individuals were not technically employees of the federation. The football body claimed that this group had absconded from their responsibilities as of February 2016 when Nick Mwendwa, the FKF president, took office.

However, Judge Ongaya dismissed these claims, emphasizing that the federation's own payroll records, submitted as evidence during the court proceedings, confirmed the 15 individuals' status as contracted employees. The judge stated, "In any event, their appointment letters have been exhibited, showing that they were emoted by FKF."

Furthermore, the judge rejected FKF's argument that the matter should have been resolved through arbitration, asserting that this argument was an afterthought. Ongaya remarked, "The arbitration clause now being invoked against the employees' suit is a mere afterthought. The court will not act in vanity to order a referral to arbitration in circumstances where there is no dispute, given the cited admission."

Oliech calls for quick integration of Omala into Harambee Stars

Byrum Ongaya reiterated that the core issue at hand was the payment of contractual salary arrears, firmly establishing the case's focus on this financial obligation.

In this legal battle, former FKF CEO Michael Esakwa and the other 14 former employees took legal action against Nick Mwendwa. Their contention stemmed from the fact that their salaries remained unpaid despite reminders communicated to FKF on March 14 and March 30, 2016.

Court records revealed that upon assuming office, Mwendwa wrote a letter on February 13, 2016, addressed to Jack Oguda, the then-CEO of the Kenyan Premier League. In this letter, Mwendwa requested funds amounting to Ksh 6 million to settle the salary arrears of Michael Esakwa and his team. The Kenyan Premier League subsequently remitted Ksh 3.2 million to the federation. However, as of March 2016, the federation had not utilized this amount to settle the outstanding salary arrears.

Additional Reporting by The Star