Kileleshwa MCA and former blogger Robert Alai has disowned all social media accounts linked to his name, insisting he has none, in a new twist to the defamation case filed by veteran broadcaster Fred Machoka.
In court papers, Alai said the lawsuit was based on mistaken identity and that he is not the person behind the alleged defamatory Facebook posts. He told the court that the name listed in the e-filed suit does not match his legal identity.
“I am not the Defendant herein as my name is Robert Alai Onyango and not the name presented as the Defendant herein,” he stated in his affidavit.
Alai, once a prominent online commentator, maintained that he no longer runs any social media platforms.
“I neither own nor operate any social media account, specifically a Facebook account under the name Robert Alai as the Plaintiff has claimed,” he said, adding that he does not engage in social media activities despite his past as a blogger.
The MCA said he has never met or even heard of Machoka personally and therefore could not have defamed him.
“I have never at any given moment met, seen, or even heard of the Plaintiff herein, and hence I have no idea about his alleged standing or reputation in society,” he told the court.
Alai urged the court to dismiss the suit with costs, saying there was no cause of action against him.
During the court session, Machoka’s lawyer Danstan Omari said his client was open to settling the matter amicably, but added that efforts would be futile since Alai had completely denied owning the Facebook account.
“The judge asked whether the parties have tried to settle the matter, but the court was informed that they have disowned and said that it’s not them. You cannot enter into a discussion with a person who says it’s not him it seems we are dealing with a case of mistaken identity,” Omari told the court.
Omari said Machoka, a respected media personality, remained willing to engage constructively should the real account owner be identified.
