The lawyers who represent his interests as Chairman of the JSC had however held the same position as Khaminwa; that no more time be, “wasted,” on what they presented to be a futile attempt to reach an out of court settlement.
“The negotiations have completely failed,” Abdullahi reported to the five judge bench comprised of Mutunga and Supreme Court judges Mohammed Ibrahim, Jackton Ojwang, Smokin Wanjala and Njoki Ndungu. “Nothing substantive was put on the table for the respondent to look into. Not a single proposal.”
The LSK proposed mediation to resolve the impasse between Tunoi and Rawal on one side and the Judiciary and Judicial Service Commission on the other given doubts that the five Supreme Court judges can hear the retirement dispute impartially.
“This is because of the seven judges of the Supreme Court, two including the Chief Justice are members of the JSC who took the view that the retirement of judges ought to be at 70; two other judges are the subject of the appeal, while the remaining three judges were part of the bench that expressed the opinion that judges ought to serve up to 74 years,” Ombudsman Otiende Amollo explained in an advisory opinion.
READ: CJ, Supreme judges lock horns over judges retirement
It’s for this reason that an activist, Okiya Omtatah, is seeking to have the bench disqualify itself from hearing the dispute.
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