Siaya Resident Magistrate’s Court has ordered blogger Michael Oduor, better known online as Mike Ochieng, to pay Ksh 3 million in general damages after failing to prove explosive claims of hiring scandals inside the county government.
Resident Magistrate Jacob Mkala delivered the verdict on Tuesday, tacking on a further Ksh 300,000 in exemplary damages and instructing the blogger to scrub every offending meme, image, and post from his Facebook and WhatsApp accounts.
Mkala ruled that Ochieng’s 2024 posts accusing Public Service Board CEO Wilfred Nyagudi of nepotism and corruption were “wholly unsubstantiated,” adding that the blogger supplied “no credible evidence” to back his allegations.
The court noted that Ochieng launched the campaign shortly after he failed to secure a county job overseen by Nyagudi, undermining any public-interest defence. The magistrate also ordered the blogger to issue an unequivocal apology on the same social platforms he used to publish the claims.
Tuesday’s decision is Ochieng’s second courtroom defeat this year. In March, High Court Judge David Kemei slapped him with a Ksh 20 million penalty for defaming North Uyoma Ward MCA Booker Bonyo, a judgment his lawyers are still appealing.
