President William Ruto on Monday threatened to withdraw Kenya from the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) should the Arusha-based court not lift a caveat on Mau Forest.
Speaking in Kuresoi, President William Ruto revealed that the caveat had made residents in the area live as squatters in their own land.
According to Ruto, the regional court had until December 2024, or Kenya would withdraw its membership.
“On caveat, we agreed we have done phase one which covered almost 10,000 acres, we have lifted it because it was here in Kenya,” Ruto stated.
“There is a court in Arusha. They have been taking me in circles but I have told them that they have two options: either they lift the caveat or we withdraw membership from that court.”
Should the year end without the issue being resolved, Ruto promised Kuresoi residents that he would sign instruments for Kenya to withdraw membership from the regional court.
“It is not acceptable that citizens are living as squatters because of no act of their fault and because there is a court that does not respect the rights of other people,” he defended the decision.
Ruto added that the decision by Kenya to withdraw from the court should not be interpreted to mean he did not believe in the rule of law.
The Head of State explained that he was concerned that citizens were suffering from acts of people who did not mean well to other Kenyans.
In 2023, Kenya lifted part of the two-decade-old caveat that had been placed on close to 10,000 acres of the vast Mau Forest.
In 2001, a total of 35,301 hectares covering Kuresoi North, Kuresoi South, Njoro and Molo regions were separated from the Eastern Mau Forest.
At the time, the caveat was imposed as a way of having controlled human settlement schemes as the population in the region expanded.
