The government has been given a timeframe of up to six months by the High Court to grant Kenyan citizenship to a UK resident who was born in Kenya.
Justice Lawrence Mugambi concludes that the failure to promptly process Hamza Mohamed Osman’s documents was unjust and infringed upon his right to a timely administrative procedure. In 2017, Osman sought to regain his citizenship but faced ongoing delays despite repeatedly raising the matter with the Director-General of Kenya Citizens and Foreign National Services Respondent, resulting in no resolution being provided.
In December 2016, Osman brought to the attention of the court the fact that the government had labelled him as inadmissible and barred him from entering Kenya, despite providing evidence of his Kenyan roots. Although Osman currently resides in the UK and holds a UK passport, he was born in 1983 to a Kenyan mother, automatically granting him Kenyan citizenship. After his mother passed away, he returned to Kenya in 1996 to live with his grandmother and attended school there until 2000. Subsequently, Osman decided to move to the United Kingdom to pursue a law degree and a master’s degree in public administration.
Osman, a native of Kenya, has resided in different parts of the country with his wife and children, who are also Kenyan citizens but live in the United Kingdom. In 2012, they decided to return to Kenya, and Osman successfully obtained a birth certificate and a Kenyan identity card. According to the current constitution, individuals who were born in Kenya but lost their citizenship after gaining citizenship in another country have the right to reclaim their Kenyan citizenship. However, when Osman arrived in Kenya in December 2016, he was denied entry without any explanation. He brought this issue to the court’s attention, explaining that his subsequent attempts to enter the country were hindered by government-issued red alerts.
Kenyan citizens who were born in Kenya but later became citizens of other countries have the chance to regain their Kenyan citizenship by reapplying. Osman, who expresses his disappointment at not getting any explanations for his entry denial, argues that this violated Article 47(2) which guarantees fair administrative action. Although the government deny intentionally delaying his citizenship application, they stress the importance of being cautious in granting citizenship to ensure it is only given to deserving individuals.
