The Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji has shortlisted a high profile three-man team that will assist him in prosecuting complex crime in the country.
In a statement seen by Kenyans.co.ke, the three, ex-DPP Philip Murgor, lawyer James Muruthi Kihara and former mayor Taib Ali Taib were prequalified from the 15 applications that were received.
"In a bid to strengthen the capacity of the ODPP and in light of the increasing complexity of crime, the DPP on 25th of September 2018, put out a public advertisement, requesting those interested to apply and be considered for prequalification to join the panel of the ODPP lawyers to provide legal services," the ODPP stated in part.
The ODPP revealed that the responses were not as expected and, therefore, the positions would be advertised again in order to build a strong portfolio of special prosecutors.
The three men shortlisted have a reputation that precedes them having been in the public eye for decades.
Philip Murgor
First on that list is former DPP Philip Murgor who served in that position in 2002 when former president Mwai Kibaki was in power.
During his tenure, he handled the high profile cases including the Anglo-leasing scandal where he received threats and his tenure was terminated in 2005.
Prior to that, in 1995, he was appointed by the Central Bank of Kenya to unravel the Goldenberg scandal and recover the billions lost in the scam. There too, he faced death threats allegedly from the primary suspect Kamlesh Pattni.
Murgor has not shied away from polls matters having defended President Daniel Moi during the petitions filed after the first multiparty elections in 1992.
While in private practice, he represented the Central Bank of Kenya in the Grand Regency scandal on the sale of the Grand Regency Hotel.
In 2011, he became the 10th Kenyan lawyer and the 568th in the world to be admitted as a legal practitioner at the International Criminal Court.
Taib Ali Taib
The celebrated lawyer was admitted to the Bar as an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya in 1988 and has practised law for 25 years to date.
A veteran politician, Taib served as the mayor of the coastal city of Mombasa from 2003-2006.
In 2016, he was among 10 candidates for the post of the chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), a post which was later taken up by Wafula Chebukati.
He practises law in Mombasa and Nairobi being the managing director of his law firm Taib A Taib.
James Muruthi Kihara
Kihara is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya and a Chartered Arbitrator.
He is also an accredited mediator with the Judiciary and is a registered Certified Public Secretary of Kenya and a Governance Auditor.
He chairs the Petition Committee, a tribunal established under the public-private partnership (PPP) Act.
Kihara is also a qualified construction adjudicator and has sat on several dispute boards. He is a member of the mediators' panel of the Strathmore Dispute Resolution Centre.
