Lawyer Donald Kipkorir has announced that he will donate the entire Ksh1 million awarded to him by the High Court in his constitutional case against Muthaiga Country Club to a cancer charity.
In a statement on Tuesday, November 11, Kipkorir revealed that his mother had suffered and succumbed to stomach cancer two years ago.
He had taken her to local hospitals and to India for treatment before she passed away in Qatar while they were returning home.
“My mother suffered and died from stomach cancer two years ago. I took her to hospitals locally and in India, but she passed away in Qatar on our way home,” he said on Tuesday.
“In honour of her memory, I will give to a Cancer Charity all the money Muthaiga Country Club was ordered to pay me,” Kipkorir stated, adding that the medical expenses for his mother’s treatment had been financially devastating and that he received no assistance from the government or anyone else.
The donation comes after Justice Chacha Mwita ruled in Kipkorir’s favour on Friday, November 7, in a constitutional petition he had filed against the exclusive club.
The court determined that Muthaiga Country Club had infringed upon Kipkorir’s constitutional rights when they denied him access to their premises.
Justice Mwita declared that the club’s refusal to grant him entry was unlawful. The ruling emphasized that invited guests have the right to access such establishments when accompanied by members.
“Justice Chacha Mwita held that MCC violated my constitutional rights and that they can’t refuse me entry if a member invites me,” Kipkorir explained in his earlier statement announcing the court victory.
The court awarded Kipkorir Ksh1 million in damages in addition to legal costs. He acknowledged his legal representative, Peter Wanyama, for his exemplary work on the constitutional case.
Beyond the financial award, Kipkorir used the opportunity to challenge Muthaiga Country Club’s controversial membership practices. He specifically criticized the club’s ‘blackballing’ system, which permits members to object to prospective members or block invited guests anonymously.
“Muthaiga Country Club should end its ‘blackballing’ policy where members with personal vendettas are allowed to anonymously stop a guest from coming or from even becoming a member,” he stated.
