Court bars blogger Nyakundi from writing defamatory articles on NBK
The National Bank of Kenya has obtained a court order barring controversial blogger Cyprian Nyakundi from writing defamatory articles about the lender on his online page or any other social media sites.
Justice Mbogoli Msagha issued the orders on Monday after NBK moved to court following a series of articles Mr Nyakundi published about alleged looting by senior officials of the bank. NBK claims the articles are false and have damaged its reputation.
The lender now wants Mr Nyakundi restrained from further writing damaging articles on the lender and to compensate it for the injury caused through his publications.
“Pending the hearing and determination of the application inter partes, an interim injunction is hereby granted restraining the defendant (Cyprian Nyakundi) whether by himself, his agents or his employees from publishing or causing to be published any statements defamatory of the National Bank of Kenya, its shareholders, directors and or employees in any manner whatsoever on his blog page, Twitter handle or any other of his social media platform accounts whatsoever,” the order reads.
Justice Msagha certified the matter urgent and set the hearing of the application by NBK for June 16.
The judge allowed NBK to furnish Mr Nyakundi with the court summons through newspaper advertisements, email and the blogger’s WhatsApp account.
Mr Nyakundi is yet to file a response in court but is expected to reply at the hearing.
The NBK in March asked the Central Bank of Kenya to intervene in dealing with “rogue bloggers who continue to spread malicious falsehoods” about the bank following an article by Mr Nyakundi.
The NBK said in its appeal to the banking sector regulator that its transformation phase has been hit hard by the said rogue bloggers who do not seek responses from them before publishing damaging articles.