Chief Justice Maraga Calls Out Uhuru for Disregarding Court Orders

Chief Justice David Maraga has blasted President Kenyatta for disregarding court orders and curtailing the operations of the Judiciary.

Maraga in an explosive media briefing on Monday blamed Uhuru for the huge backlog of cases citing his refusal to appoint the 41 judges recommended by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).

Maraga further called out Uhuru for disobeying two court orders, accusing him of violating the Constitution by refusing to appoint judges.

“It is important to clearly and categorically state that this shortage of judges and the near paralysis of court operations has been caused by the President.”

“The President has persisted in his refusal despite orders in two cases requiring him to swear in those judges within 14 days,” a seemingly enraged Maraga noted.

He gave the Environment and Land Court as an example, saying the unit has only 31 judges across the country and a backlog of 16,457 cases of March 31st this year.

“If you file a land case in the Environment and Land Court at Milimani today, the earliest your case will be heard is in 2022. This is because we have a total of 31 judges in the country against a case backlog of 16, 457 as of March 31, 2020,” he stated.

Maraga observed that Uhuru, who raised integrity issues with some of the 41 judges, has no constitutional power to question or reject names recommended to him by JSC for appointment.

“The courts ruled that the president cannot change the list, review it, or reject some names. He cannot decide to cherry-pick from the list of nominees. Both courts ruled the President must appoint the persons as recommended and forwarded to him by the JSC,” n noted Maraga.

“Unfortunately, this disregard of court orders by the President is part of the pattern by the Executive. As your Excellency has pledged in the past, you respect the Rule of Law. I urge you to now demonstrate that faith and respect for the Rule of Law by complying with those two Court Orders. In doing so, you will also alleviate much suffering for Kenyans who are seeking justice in our Court,” said Maraga.