High Court Greenlights GMO Lift in Kenya, Dismissing All Oppositions
The High Court on Thursday dismissed all cases filed against President William Ruto’s decision to lift the ban on Genetically Modified Crops and Foods in Kenya.
Justice Lawrence Mugambi, sitting at Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi, rejected the petitions challenging the controversial move to lift the ban on genetically modified foods.
Mugambi ruled that the matter had been properly addressed in 2023 by the Environment and Land Court in Nairobi as part of a case filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
The court further stated that, as the issue had been adequately dealt with, no costs would be imposed on the petitioners.
He concluded that no Kenyan would face health risks from the cultivation and consumption of GMOs, dismissing the LSK’s case.
“Given these circumstances, the court finds that the current petition is res judicata. The petition is struck out with no orders as to costs,” Justice Mugambi ruled.
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In the earlier ruling by the Environment Court, Justice Oscar Angote determined that LSK failed to provide evidence supporting the claim that GMOs pose health risks.
“Except for NEMA, which has not yet issued an Environmental Impact Assessment Licence, we should trust that our health and environment are being properly managed. It is implausible to suggest that all these institutions have conspired to endanger the public, at least based on the evidence available,” Angote ruled.
“The evidence shows that the country has implemented strong frameworks with clear requirements that must be met before considering applications for the approval, transfer, handling, and use of GMOs,” Angote emphasized in his landmark decision.
In early October 2022, President Ruto signed an executive order lifting a decade-long ban on the growth and cultivation of Genetically Modified Crops and Foods (GMOs).
This order followed a Cabinet resolution to lift the ban despite opposition from some Kenyans, who argued that the decision would have serious consequences for the population.
Today’s ruling is likely to reignite the debate on GMO safety, a contentious issue with differing opinions from the Kenyan public and professionals about the decision.
High Court Greenlights GMO Lift in Kenya, Dismissing All Oppositions
