Companies

Home Afrika ordered to pay former CEO Sh12m

ex

Mr Njoroge Ng’ang’a. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Property developer Home Afrika #ticker:HAFR has been ordered to pay its former chief executive Njoroge Ng’ang’a a total of Sh12.1 million for wrongful dismissal.

Mr Ng’ang’a went to court on May 30, 2016 claiming a total of Sh36.3 million following his sacking on September 1, 2015 due to what the company termed as poor performance.

In awarding the Sh12.1 million, the court said the former CEO was not given an opportunity to be heard and neither did Home Afrika show there was a process of evaluating his performance.

“The respondent’s (Home Afrika) witness was, in essence, admitting that the claimant was not afforded an opportunity to be heard before the decision to terminate was made on September 1, 2015,” Justice Stephen Radido of Nairobi’s Employment and Labour Relations Court said in the judgement issued on May 29, 2020.

“… and since the requirement to be afforded an opportunity is a peremptory precept, the court can conclude that the termination of the claimant’s employment was procedurally unfair as it did not meet the statutory minimum.”

The judge rejected some of the claims by Mr Ng’ang’a and granted others including an award for wrongful termination, unpaid salaries and leave days.

“From the foregoing, the court finds and declares that the termination of the claimant’s employment was unfair and awards him (i) compensation Sh6.7 million,” the judge said.

“If any of the dues admitted in the respondent’s letter of October 27, 2015 have not been paid, the respondent should pay them as part of the award herein.”

The amount for three months’ pay in lieu of notice is computed at Sh2.3 million, unpaid leave (Sh1.1 million) and unpaid salaries/allowances (Sh1.9 million).

The judge said the sums will attract interest at court rates from May 30, 2016 if not paid on or before July 30, 2020.

Mr Ng’ang’a had also claimed Sh7 million in the form of a commission at the rate of 35 percent for brokering a deal with Egyptian firm Wadi Degla to build a sports complex but this was rejected.