EADB Responds to Tuju’s Repayment Offer Claims in Ksh 1.1 Billion Loan Dispute

The East African Development Bank (EADB) has responded to claims by former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju that its board rejected his repayment offers over the Ksh 1.1 billion loan.

In a statement on March 16, EADB said it has not received any repayment offer from Tuju in the last seven years that the case has been going on.

“At no point, over the course of this seven-year-long dispute, has the EADB received any credible or verifiable repayment offer from the debtors as have been alleged,” EADB said.

EADB said it has noted the great interest expressed in recent days over a matter involving one of its debtors in the Republic of Kenya.

“Ensuing public discourse and commentary, most of it grossly misleading, compels the bank to issue the following statement for context and clarification, and based on publicly available disclosures and documents in various courts of law,” EADB said.

EADB Explains Chronology of Events

The Bank explained in 2015, Dari Limited a company registered in the Republic of Kenya – borrowed $9,197,084 (Ksh 1.1 billion) from the EADB under a loan facility agreement dated 10th April 10, 2015.

According to EADB, the agreement was jointly negotiated and agreed upon by both parties who were respectively represented by counsel.

Further, EAB said Dari Limited shareholders and directors pledged various properties they owned in Nairobi which were subsequently charged to the Bank as a security for the facility,

Subsequently, EADB said the loan was drawn on July 29, 2015 pursuant to the terms of the Facility Agreement, after the charges were duly registered in favour of the Bank.

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Demand Notices and Court Rulings

As of the second quarter of 2016, the Bank said the loan was in default, prompting the EADB to issue various demand notices to Dari Limited in November 2017 which were ignored and not honoured.

“Following the default on the loan repayment (and other conditions for the loan), the EADB was compelled to file proceedings in the High Court of Justice in England, United Kingdom – the forum and the governing law provided for and agreed under the Facility Agreement,” EADB said.

The Bank said it obtained judgment for the sum of USD 15,162,320.95-being the principal sum, interests, and penalties which continued to accrue in line with the facility agreement.

This was issued on the June 19, 2019 adding that both parties had legal representation in the Courts of England.

EADB said the High Court in Nairobi later recognized and confirmed the U.K. judgment against Dari Limited on 13th February 2020, and later by the Court of Appeal in Nairobi on 20 April 2023.

Consequently, the Bank said it successfully auctioned the Ngong Road property that had been pledged by Dari Limited as security, on October 1, 2024.

EADB said the auction came after following all due processes and the highest bidder purchased the property. At the time, there were no court orders preventing the sale of the property at the auction.

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The Bank said Dari Limited filed a law suit after the auction challenging inter alia the valuation of the property.

EADB said Dari was granted an interim injunction order which could only relate to pledged property that had not yet been sold.

However, the Bank said in a substantive ruling, delivered on March 9, 2026, the High Court in Nairobi struck out the suit, and effectively vacated the interim orders.

“The EADB distances itself from the ongoing public theatre of the borrower’s distortion of facts and disinformation and remains guided by the principles of the rule of law, its governance policies, and, more importantly, by the loan facility agreement entered between itself and the borrower. There must be finality of court matters,” reads part of the statement.

EADB responds to claims by former CS Raphael Tuju that it’s board rejected his loan repayment offers. PHOTO/ FILE