Seasoned lawyer Paul Muite on Monday, December 16 criticised President Uhuru Kenyatta for the delayed appointment of 41 appointed judges.
According to the Daily Nation, Muite who represents the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) told a three-judge bench that the president is to blame for the delay in the appointment of the judicial officials.
“President Uhuru Kenyatta has no alternative but to discharge his constitutional mandate,” remarked Muite as quoted by Daily Nation.
The lawyer further submitted before High Court judges Lydia Achode, Enoch Chacha Mwita, and James Makau that the constitution requires the president to nominate and swear-in persons recommended to him by the JSC for appointment.
The bench further heard that on July 22, the Judicial Service Commission Chairman and Chief Justice David Maraga presented the names of 11 judges appointed to the Court of Appeal, 20 to the Environment and Lands Court and 10 to the Labour Relations Court.
However, the lawyer indicated that Kenyatta shelved the appointments after receiving intelligence reports about some of the nominees recommended for various positions.
“The registrar of the Judiciary, who is also the secretary to the JSC, wrote to the director of the NIS seeking clearance on whether he had any adverse information about any of the 41 selected persons.
“The decision not to appoint and swear-in the nominated persons have caused a constitutional crisis in the Judiciary, which needs to be resolved soon. The JSC, not the NIS, has the constitutional mandate to appoint judges," added Muite.
In a story by The Standard on November 19, members of the Kenya Magistrates and Judges Association KMJA urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to appoint 41 nominated Judicial Service Commission (JSC) members to enable the completion of 372,928 backlogged cases.
According to the association, about 400,000 cases were being filed every year against a highly reducing number of judges and magistrates appointments.
The cases backlog as of January 7, 2019, stood at 372,928 cases being handled by only 644 judges and magistrates.
The union further argued that the continuous delay in the appointment of judges was a violation of the constitution and the rule of law and watered down the institutional independence of the Judiciary.
