The Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ), on Wednesday, March 26, suspended the summons it had previously issued to the 10 Judiciary Commission Service (JSC) members.
On February 28, the ombudsman summoned the 10 commissioners for failing to publish and publicise a status report on all unresolved matters lodged against judicial officers as directed.
According to CAJ, the decision to cancel the summons was made to pave the way for dialogue between the two commissions.
It was also made at Chief Justice Martha Koome's request, a move that is allowed by the Constitution of Kenya.
“The suspension was necessitated by the need to allow for inter-institutional engagement with JSC through dialogue, mediation and/or negotiation,” part of the statement read.
“The decision follows a request by the Chief Justice and is in line with Article 159 (2) (c) of the Constitution and Regulation 23 of the Commission on Administrative Justice, 2013.”
Another reason the summons were lifted was a pending matter before the Supreme Court, scheduled for 3 April.
The JSC has reportedly sought an advisory opinion on how to handle complaints concerning Constitutional Commissioners and devolved governments in relation to its powers and limitations.
“Given that the Supreme Court is seized of the advisory, the Commission has decided to suspend all the summons issued on 28 February 2025 to JSC members to allow these two processes to proceed without let or hindrance and to demonstrate CAJ’s good faith and commitment to resolve the issues amicably,” the statement read.
“We thank the Chief Justice for honouring the Commission’s summons through her legal team.”
On March 1, the JSC, led by CJ Koome, threatened legal action against the CAJ, noting that the commission had overstepped its mandate as it lacked the jurisdiction to make such a summons.
“The JSC will take all necessary steps to defend its constitutional authority and will not tolerate any attempts to undermine its independence,” part of the statement by the JSC read.
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