A cook who was fired by Mukumu Girls High School a month ago has sued the school management.

He was fired for talking to the media about food poisoning that claimed the lives of three students and a teacher at the institution,  has sued the institution for wrongful dismissal.

In papers filed at the Kakamega chief magistrate court on July 21, 2023, Douglas Muchela said his sacking was based on falsehoods, innuendos and as an attempt by the school to cover a matter that was already in public domain, in a show cause letter served to him on June 2, by the school.

He said he was wrongfully accused by the school board of management (BOM) of  issuing unverified, misleading and disparaging information to the Saturday Nation Newspaper, against the school in an article titled "How Mukumu Girls Students and Teachers Were Poisoned to Death'.

The letter filed in court said that Muchela made a written submission to the directorate of quality assurance on May 17, 2023. It  indicated that his heads of department did not know anything professional concerning the kitchen, and that was why he was not ready to take instructions from the cateress and the head cook.

“On May 27, 2023, you issued unverified, misleading and disparaging information against the school, in an article titled 'How Mukumu Girls Students and Teacher Were Poisoned To Death".

The information you issued to the media indicating that the ugali and beef served to staff and students at the school had a weird smell and was unpalatable, was not only misleading but also aimed at tarnishing the reputation of the school,” the letter read.

“It is captioned in the newspaper that you carried githeri from the school to your home and ate with your family which was the cause of the ill-health of your family,” it read further.

Through Wafula Wawire & Company Advocates, Muchela wants the court to make a declaration that the purported termination of his employment as a cook by the school was unprocedural, arbitrary, punitive and unlawful and order his reinstatement.

Muchela is also seeking an order by the court for an award of damages against the respondent for unlawful termination, subjecting him to unwarranted pain and anguish.

He wants the court to issue an order directing the respondent to pay the claimant his terminal and other benefits that would have accrued up to the date of his retirement in the alternative.

Muchela has named the school principal Jane Mmbone as the respondent in her capacity as secretary to the school BOM.

Muchela said he served the school religiously until the year 2007, when he took a rest to pursue other engagements.

“In the year 2016 vide a letter dated December 31, 2015, I was appointed again following recommendations from the school bursar who had earlier on interacted with my way of conducting activities at the school during my first tenure,” he said.

He said he surprisingly started feeling unwell, especially in the oesophagus around March 2, 2023.

“That was on or about March 7, 2023, I approached the school principal with the sole purpose to relay this information. I was even hospitalized at some point over the same issue, and had severe pain in the esophagus and excreted blood stained stool, a trend which re-occurred to my counterparts at school,” he said.

He said during that period, he served at the school's bakery as the head chef and was not directly involved in the affairs of the school's main kitchen.

Muchela said he was victimised by the actions by the respondent including being published in daily newspapers.

 “The same has occasioned me mental torture, fatigue and is threatening my ability to be employed elsewhere following the misleading information the respondent gave to the media. I am currently unemployed and also risk continuing in the same situation following the conduct of the respondent putting in mind that this is the only source of livelihood I depend on,” he said in his statement.

He said that he did not in any way make such clumsy and unbelievable misrepresentation as alleged by the respondent and such should not be his burden to bear.

Attorney General’s office has entered appearance for the school in the suit.

“Please take notice that Hon. Attorney General civil litigation department Kakamega has entered appearance on behalf of the respondents in this suit,” read a memorandum of appearance dated August 1, 2023, and signed by Senior State Counsel Stanford Nyauma on behalf of Attorney General Justine Muturi.