Leadership wrangle has deepened further in the Dock Workers Union of Kenya (DWU) with rival factions declaring themselves legitimate officials.

On February 26, the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Mombasa delivered a ruling with far-reaching implications, which pinpointed governance and financial irregularities in the union.

The court found Secretary General Simon Sang culpable for mismanaging union affairs and violating both the law and the union’s constitution.

Justice Mbaru ruled that Sang had also misappropriated union funds, failed in his statutory duties and unlawfully orchestrated the suspension and removal of elected officials. Consequently, the court ordered a forensic audit of the union’s accounts for the past three years under the supervision of the registrar of trade unions with a report to be filed within 30 days.

On the suspension of officials, including Deputy Secretary General Sulman Owuor and his co-claimants, the court found that although the National Executive Committee (NEC) had the power to suspend, due process was not followed. Thus, the affected officials were denied a fair hearing and their removal from the union register by the registrar was declared unlawful.

The court also found that Sang improperly used statutory processes, including filing Form Q to effect leadership changes without adhering to the union’s constitution or internal dispute resolution mechanisms.

As a result, the court lifted the suspension of the affected officials and ordered that the union leadership revert to its position as of December 13, 2024. It further directed that all allowances and payments due to the reinstated officials from the date of their suspension be paid in full.

The dispute escalated on Saturday after a faction led by embattled Deputy Secretary General Sulman Owuor unanimously elected him as the new secretary general during a contested meeting.

Owuor, who previously served as deputy to ousted Simon Sang, had earlier been removed from office before being reinstated alongside four other officials following a February 26 ruling by the Employment and Labour Relations Court.

The other reinstated officials include Amin Iloti, Kibibi Omeri, Maskat Salim and Mejumaa Chirau.

Following their reinstatement, the group moved to oust Sang and his allies, declaring themselves the legitimate leadership of the union. During Saturday’s meeting convened by Owuor, a section of members endorsed his election as secretary general. Amin Iloti was elected national chair, Kibibi Omeri national treasurer, Maskat Salim vice treasurer and Mejumaa Chirau chair of the gender committee.

Other elected are Bernadette Bahati Musyoki as assistant general secretary, Ruwa Mpate as assistant chair and Granton Patrick and Darlene Ongwena as male and female young workers’ representatives, respectively.

However, Sang’s faction has dismissed the changes, accusing Owuor’s team of attempting to seize control of the union without following laid down procedures.

The group said that during a special National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in February, it had been agreed that elections would be held on June 25, 2026.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / By Sadik Hassan