Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has been summoned to the High Court for sentencing following his failure to honor orders to halt the construction of an Ebola facility in Laikipia County.

In her ruling dated June 22, High Court Judge Patricia Nyaundi noted that CS Duale had "deliberately and willfully" disobeyed orders issued on 28 May and further affirmed on 2 June, which effectively halted the set-up of U.S-backed Ebola quarantine and treatment centre. 

Consequently, Duale is expected to appear in court at 11:00am on Tuesday, 23 June, for sentencing in the Katiba Institute vs State Law Office case filed on 10th June 2026.

In May, the U.S. announced plans to construct and run an Ebola facility at Laikipia Airbase as part of Washington's push to proactively manage the latest outbreak of the viral disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This initiative has since kicked up a storm marked by protests and a court case opposing the construction.

Justice Nyaundi cited the government's "untenable" attempt to circumvent the court's orders by recharacterising ongoing construction as a unilateral national public health initiative rather than a joint Kenya-U.S. project on Ebola.

CS Duale had argued that that while construction under the bilateral collaboration between Nairobi and the U.S was halted, Kenya was entitled to continue "enhancing the country's quarantine and isolation capacities at Laikipia Airbase" as part of its independent constitutional and statutory obligations.

"What the 2nd Respondent seeks to do is to avoid compliance by recasting or recharacterising the ongoing construction," the judge stated in her ruling. "An order of the court is not to be outflanked by semantics or evasion. The duty is to obey the order as issued, not as one might wish it had been framed."

She added: "To suggest that one may circumvent a binding order by altering the configuration of actors is to trivialise the authority of this Court and to elevate form over constitutional fidelity."

Additionally, the court found that CS Duale had both actual and constructive knowledge of the orders, having acknowledged them in television interview appearances on May 30 and June 3 and during an address to the National Assembly on June 3.

Media evidence on Ebola construction

The suit, which was brought by the Katiba Institute and other petitioners, was supported by extensive media evidence, including Reuters reports and satellite imagery showing ongoing construction activity at the Laikipia Airbase even after the court orders were issued.

According to Reuters, at least six military aircraft, including C-130 and C-17 transport planes carrying technical equipment, physicians, engineers, laboratory experts and construction workers, had landed in Nanyuki since May 24, with three flights arriving after the court orders were issued.

Further satellite images broadcast by NTV on June 9 and reported by the Daily Nation and New York Times on June 10 depicted structures, tents and vehicles consistent with ongoing construction.

The government's legal team had sought to dismiss the media reports as lacking probative value, citing a Court of Appeal decision that reports from un-cross-examined sources are inadmissible. 

Justice Nyaundi did not address that objection directly but appeared to rely on CS Duale's own public admissions and affidavit statements in reaching her conclusion.

The court declined, however, to find the government in contempt over a separate order requiring disclosure of documents relating to the facility, including any bilateral agreements, public health assessments, regulatory approvals, and treatment protocols.

The petitioners had argued that the documents furnished were insufficient. But Justice Nyaundi accepted the Cabinet Secretary's representation that "the documents furnished constitute the full extent of the material available to him."

The court also exonerated the Attorney-General, who had been named as the 1st Respondent, noting that she had not been personally subject to the disclosure directive and that to impose liability on her "would be to condemn her unheard."

Public opposition

The facility at Laikipia Airbase has been the subject of intense public opposition, with residents taking to the streets in protest on June 9. Community groups have raised concerns about environmental and biosafety risks, as well as the lack of parliamentary and county government approvals.

The US Embassy issued a public notice on June 3 indicating it was aware of the court action and was "actively engaging with the Kenyan Government to resolve any objections and communicate their shared objectives to the Kenyan people."

President William Ruto has publicly stated that the facility is being constructed at the expense of the United States, a claim that complicates the government's argument that ongoing works are now a purely domestic endeavour.

Mr Duale is now required to appear before the court on June 23 at 11am for mitigation and sentencing. The court has not indicated what sanctions it may impose, but contempt of court in Kenya can carry penalties including fines or imprisonment.

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