Blow To John Chebochok After Court Blocks His Swearing-In As KTDA Factory Director
The move by the High Court saw the ceremony slated to be held during the factory's Annual General Meeting suspended pending the hearing of a petition filed against him.
Marvin Chege 
John Chebochok, the newly elected Director of Toror Tea Factory, has encountered another hurdle after the High Court in Kericho suspended his swearing-in ceremony.
The move by the High Court saw the ceremony slated to be held during the factory's Annual General Meeting suspended pending the hearing of a petition filed against him.
Five individuals had argued that Chebochok's approval as a director had posed a significant threat to the financial stability and reputation of Tegat Tea Factory Limited, which owns Toror Tea Factory.
“THAT in the meantime the A.G.M scheduled for 18/7/2024 to swear in Mr. John Chebochok into office as director is suspended. THAT the matter is scheduled for ruling on 15/8/2024,” read the court documents.
An image of the Kericho Law Courts. /KENYA NEWS AGENCY
The petitioners had moved to court and asserted that approving Chebochok during the Special General Meeting scheduled for July 18, 2024, posed a significant threat to the company.
The matter came up for hearing but directions were given on Monday for the Petitioners’ application to be canvassed by way of written submissions
Usikimye CBO, Wangu Kanja Foundation (K) Registered Trustee, Oxfam, The African Gender and Media 8Initiatative Trustees and Flonbe Initiative supported the petition and further argued that key stakeholders and purchasers of tea from the Applicants company protested the election of Chebochok and have since suspended their business with the Applicant, leading to a significant financial downturn.
“The 1st Respondent does not meet the provisions of Chapter 6 of the Constitution of Kenya, which emphasizes the responsibilities and ethics required of public officers, including integrity, leadership accountability, and adherence to ethical standards,” the petitioners argued.
The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) Group Company Secretary in response supported the notice of motion arguing that Chebochok's election is not only affecting the sales of the factory he was elected to but is also now affecting the brand of the KTDA and all its smallholder factories, thereby putting at risk the economic livelihood of more than a million farmers who supply tea to KTDA factories.
The court thus directed the petitioners to serve written submissions within three days while the respondents, Chebochok, KTDA, the Tea Board of Kenya, Tegat Tea Factory and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), reply within a similar time period from the date of being served.
“THAT the petitioners to have 3 days to file and serve written submissions and THAT the respondents and the interested parties to have 3 days from the date of service to file and serve written submissions,” read the orders.
Chebochok was voted in as the Director of the Kenya Tea Development Authority (KTDA) for the Toror Tea Zone in elections conducted by the IEBC.
His candidacy and subsequent election attracted widespread controversy as he was prominently featured in a BBC documentary aired in February 2023, titled "Sex for Work: The True Cost of Our Tea," which unleashed shocking cases of severe sexual exploitation in the tea industry.
Chebochok and other managers were filmed by BBC's Africa Eye and Panorama programmes in February 2023, exploiting female workers in exchange for contract extensions and better working conditions.
The programme included detailed testimonies of sexual exploitation by workers, as well as undercover footage implicating Chebochok as a key perpetrator.
