A Milimani High Court has issued a temporary conservatory order blocking the recruitment exercise and appointment of the director general of the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).

The order stems from a petition filed by Humprey Bulimu seeking several reliefs, arguing that the resolution of the KCAA board to advertise, commence and undertake the competitive recruitment process for the position of director general was unlawful and unconstitutional.

In issuing the interim order on June 3, 2026, Justice Roselyne Aburili noted that the petitioner has successfully persuaded the court of the need to preserve the process of his application and petition being rendered nugatory after the conclusion of the recruitment process.

Judge Aburili states that even though the recruitment, once concluded and an appointment of the director general is made, the midst of alleged illegalities, though reversible if found to be in violation of the law, it carries with it a high cost to the public coffer and reputational damage to a public entity in the aviation industry.

“For the foregoing reasons, I hereby grant a temporary conservatory order staying the already commenced process of recruitment and appointment of the director general of the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority by the 1st respondent’s board until the application for conservatory orders is heard and determined,” Judge Aburili ruled.

 Recruitment exercise contested

Bulimu, through his counsel, urged the court to grant the interim order, arguing that the matter is urgent and failure to restrain the KCAA from proceeding with the recruitment means the board will continue with the process and conclude it.  

Appearing before Justice Aburili, the petitioners’ counsel maintained that the recruitment process is illegal and reversing it will mean a process of removal of an already recruited director general. 

“That Kenya is a signatory to the international instruments in the aviation industry and that it cannot afford to conduct an illegal process of recruiting a director general in such a manner, absent a quorum of the recruiting board,” the court heard.

The petitioner further avers that five board members’ terms expired on April 20, 2026, following their appointment through competitive recruitment on April 19, 2023, and that therefore they have no authority at all to recruit the director general.

Bulimu asserts that under Section 17(2) of the Civil Aviation Act, the quorum of the board is six members, excluding the director general; hence, the board as constituted has no quorum to transact any lawful business of the Civil Aviation Act.