A judge has temporarily suspended a section of the law that spells punishment for those who fail to disclose their dual citizenship status.
High Court judge James Makau issued the order in a case in which business tycoon Humphrey Kariuki, who is facing allegations of evading tax, challenged Section 8(4) of the Immigration Act.
The disputed law states that an individual who fails to disclose his or her dual citizenship within three months is liable to a Sh5 million fine, three years' imprisonment or both.
“A conservatory order be and is hereby issued in public interest and in the end of justice, suspending the continued implementation of prosecution under any act enforcing this law on a Kenyan citizen in the country or in the Diaspora who has acquired dual citizenship,” said Justice Makau.
Mr Kariuki, who has held a Cypriot passport since May 2016, reckons the law does not provide defence or an exception if the stipulated time frame of three months upon getting the second citizenship lapses. He argues that the section limits freedom of movement as provided for in the Constitution. He claims he never kept his dual citizenship status a secret.
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