Residents of Owino Uhuru in Changamwe Constituency during a past demonstration. [Photo/observers.france24.com]
A Mombasa court has issued a 45-day notice to the Attorney General and National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to file their responses in a case they have been sued by the residents of Owino Uhuru in Changamwe Constituency.
Justice Ann Amollo on Monday observed that the case had not been heard since 2016 when the residents moved to court seeking compensation for the damage caused by a lead battery factory in the area.
"This is the last time the matter is being adjourned. The respondents have 45 days to file their responses, failing which we shall proceed without them," the judge ruled.
Nine villagers, through Centre for Justice, Governance and Environmental Action, filed the petition in court in 2016 seeking its intervention after the relevant bodies failed to address their plight.
They are seeking Sh1.6 billion compensation, saying their lives and health have been ruined or affected adversely and they need money for constant medication.
The AG and NEMA were sued alongside the Cabinet Secretaries in the ministries of Environment, Water and Natural Resources and Health, the county government of Mombasa, the Export Processing Zone Authority, Metal Refinery Limited and Penguin Paper and Book Company.
The 3,000 victims want to be compensated for medical complications and deaths that arose from the alleged negligence.
They claim the State and protection agencies failed to monitor lead emissions and effluent from the Kenya Metal Refinery.
Although the factory, which commenced operations in 2006, was finally forced to move after seven years, the community is still suffering the consequences.
The petitioners' lawyer, Charles Onyango, said he would call seven experts to testify and demonstrate the levels of lead poison in the village and residents.