Chief Justice David Maraga on Thursday dismissed allegations made by Interior CS Fred Matiang'i that a section of the Judiciary had been captured, telling litigants to appeal court orders they were unhappy with.
Maraga refused to comment specifically on the matter of Miguna Miguna's deportation which Matiang'i was addressing in Parliament when he made the controversial remarks, noting that it was still in Court.
"I'm not aware of any part of the judiciary that has been captured by the opposition or the media. If you are not happy with an order that has been given, the channels are there you can appeal," Maraga stated.
He further disclosed that as the President of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), he had not received any complaints on improper conduct by judges.
"It is not true that any judges have been captured by the opposition. They give orders and they can make mistakes, if they make mistakes you can appeal," Maraga explained.
[caption caption="CS Fred Matiang'i"]
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He noted that the judiciary had issued orders in favour of and against both the government and the opposition during and after the electioneering period in 2017.
Maraga spoke to the press for a few minutes as he headed to an East African conference discussing various judicial matters in Nairobi.
Appearing before a Parliamentary committee on Tuesday, Matiang'i decried an 'evil clique' of judges who he said were frustrating him.
"There is a certain clique of judicial officers who have gotten into 'unholy relationship' with a clique of Opposition activists to derail the government. It is like there is a race on which judicial officer will injunct the government, and the higher the officer may be the better.
"One civil society member gets 30 exparte orders in a month. Even if he goes to Court asking for all CSs to commit suicide, the orders will be granted. It is the case of collusion between activist lawyers, judicial officers and elements in civil society to drag us," he stated at Continental House.
Matiang'i's statement sparked an angry reaction from NASA leader Raila Odinga who accused Matiang'i of jeopardizing his partnership with President Uhuru Kenyatta which had an aim of achieving national unity.
[caption caption="NASA Leader Raila Odinga"]
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