Chief Justice Martha Koome, through the Judicial Service Commission, wrote to President William Ruto over his accusations that a number of unnamed judges are corrupt and working with the opposition to block his administration’s policies.
Ruto even vowed to disobey court orders against his government’s projects.
We are on the precipice of a constitutional crisis
During a press conference on Monday, CJ Koome warned that the president’s persistent attacks against the judiciary are “setting up Kenya for chaos and anarchy”.
“We are on the precipice of a constitutional crisis,” she said, describing Ruto’s threats and declarations as extremely serious and a monumental assault on the constitution, the rule of law and the stability of Kenya.
Koome said decisions of a judge made in the course of the discharge of judicial function cannot be questioned, except through a judicial review or appeal.
Last year, the High Court in Nairobi ordered the suspension of the implementation of housing levy policy, which has led to increased taxes and 1.5% deduction of salaries.
Allegations of sabotage
During a public rally in Nandi County, his Rift Valley backyard, President Ruto said: “We want to deal with corruption and incompetence in the judiciary in the courts.”
According to him, there are “powerful individuals with vested interests” in the political arena who are allegedly using the courts to sabotage and derail his government’s policies by bribing judges.
“They want to sabotage our development agenda. We will deal decisively with corruption in the judiciary to restore its credibility,” he said.
Raila isn’t buying it
Opposition leader Raila Odinga has however warned CJ Koome against any talks with Ruto saying that such negotiations will “compromise judicial independence, weaken the judiciary and threaten democracy”.
Raila accused Ruto of intimidating judges for ruling against his “unpopular” policies, urging the president to appeal if he disagrees with any court ruling.
The meeting will end up with Ruto scaring judges to always rule in favour of his government policies
Earlier this month, Raila slammed Ruto’s attacks on the judiciary, accusing him of crossing the red-line and of absolute dictatorship.
The civil society is also jittery about the Ruto-Koome talks.
Suba Churchill, national coordinator of the National Civil Society Congress, tells The Africa Report that Koome’s request for the meeting is a clear sign that the Chief Justice has been intimidated and that the judiciary is under state capture.
“The meeting will end up with Ruto scaring judges to always rule in favour of his government policies,” he says.
The proper thing for Ruto to [do is to] withdraw those remarks and apologise to Kenyans
According to Churchill, the only way that Kenyans can trust such talks is if they ensure the judiciary is more independent and has sufficient funding to carry out its functions.
Last week, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) staged protests in Nairobi against Ruto’s attacks on the judiciary.
“The Chief Justice [Koome] should not, under any circumstances, have a dialogue with the executive over [Ruto’s] remarks,” LSK president Eric Theuri said. “The proper thing for Ruto to [do is to] withdraw those remarks and apologise to Kenyans.”
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