During the interviews for Chief Justice, Muigai who was part of the recruitment panel on account of being a Judicial Service Commissioner, time and again raised the question of the functions of the Supreme Court/COURTESY-ODPP
NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 14 – The newly reconstituted Supreme Court bench, true to Chief Justice David Maraga’s words, held its inaugural session on Monday.
Present at the session were Senior Counsel led by Law Society of Kenya President Isaac Okero and Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko.
Echoing previously stated sentiments of Attorney General Githu Muigai in his address to the court, Tobiko – while acknowledging the bench as the court of last resort – cautioned it against stepping outside the bounds of its constitutional mandate.
“The Supreme Court just as all other courts must observe and respect the established principles of separation of power and in the words of Justice Sotomayor of the US Supreme Court, our Courts (including the Supreme Court) in making their decisions must strive never to forget the real world consequences of (their) decisions on individuals, businesses and government.”
During the interviews for Chief Justice, Muigai who was part of the recruitment panel on account of being a Judicial Service Commissioner, time and again raised the question of the functions of the Supreme Court.
On November 1, Maraga said the Court would resume its duties this Monday and hear cases on a priority basis following his appointment as CJ, Philomena Mwilu’s appointment as his Deputy and the appointment of Isaac Lenaola as a Supreme Court judge.
READ: CJ Maraga enlists CORD support as Supreme Bench gets down to business
Following the retirement of Maraga’s predecessor Willy Mutunga, and forced retirement of former Deputy Chief Justice Kalpana Rawal and Supreme Court judge Philip Tunoi on account of their ages, the Court fell below the five judge bench minimum required by the Constitution for proper constitution.
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