UHURU’s war with Judiciary is far from over as he now wants CJ KOOME and DCJ MWILU off the bench in the case against him – The two could be biased

 

Thursday, July 8, 2021 – President Uhuru Kenyatta has opened another war with Judiciary and now wants Chief Justice Martha Koome and her Deputy, Philomena Mwilu, off the bench that will hear and determine the petition filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).

Through Attorney General Paul Kihara, Uhuru stated that Koome and Mwilu are likely to be biased and conflicted in the matter as it involves the swearing-in of the Court of Appeal judge Mohammed Warsame as a JSC member without formal appointment by President Kenyatta.

“I saw the composition of the bench and realized that the chief justice and her deputy chief justice are members of the bench and they are also members of the JSC as the chairperson and representative of the Supreme Court judges, respectfully,” Principal State Counsel from AG’s office Mr. Thande Kuria stated.

He went further and stated that they want the bench reconstituted afresh to replace the two judges to eliminate any perception of bias or possible conflict of interest.

He raised the concerns through a letter dated July 6 to the court. However, the court adjourned the hearing and directed Mr. Thande to file a formal application within 7 days seeking the recusal of the two judges.

Justice Koome said the letter was an improper way of approaching the top court.

In the petition, LSK wants the Supreme Court to determine whether section 15(2) of the Judicial Service Act,2011 is constitutional for giving the president extra-constitutional powers to appoint members of the JSC.