NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 26-President Uhuru Kenyatta led Kenyans in mourning former Chief Justice Evan Gicheru, who died Saturday, as a dilligent judge.
Gicheru died on Saturday morning, according to Chief Justice David Maraga who credited him for “entrenching independence in the judiciary ending the tradition where the Judiciary took instructions from the Executive in the discharge of its daily functions.”
President Kenyatta said Gicheru was a towering legal mind and a highly accomplished judge.
“It is sad that we have lost one of the greatest legal minds we have had in our country. Justice Gicheru worked tirelessly during his time at the helm of the Judiciary to ensure that the country’s democracy continued to thrive,” he said.
Former President Mwai Kibaki mourned retired Chief Justice Evan Gicheru as a dedicated servant who served the country with integrity.
Kibaki, in whose tenure Gicheru served, said the former CJ will be remembered for his contribution in the country’s justice system.
“Justice Gicheru was a consummate public servant whose integrity, sense of rectitude and assiduousness were unsurpassed. During his tenure as Chief Justice—between 2003 and 2011—the late Gicheru distinguished himself as a firm yet honorable and impartial overseer of the fullest extent of Kenya’s jurisprudential affairs,” he stated.
Deputy President William Ruto said Gicheru will be remembered for his contribution to restoring public faith and trust in the country’s judicial system.
“Justice Evan Gicheru was a legal giant who served our country with dedication and distinction. He was humble yet a tough-minded leader who contributed immensely to the advancement of the independence of the Judiciary,” stated the DP.
Orange Democratic Movement Party leader and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga described the former CJ as a great legal mind who returned the country to the rule of law after the 2002 transition.
“I remember Rtd Chief Justice Evans Gicheru as a great legal mind and the man on whose shoulders we placed the burden of returning the country to the Rule of Law after the 2002 transition. He did his best under difficult circumstances. My thoughts and prayers are with his family,” Odinga said.
Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula said “The passing on of Evans Gicheru,CJ Emeritus, brings to sunset an illustrious career of one of Kenya’s finest and honest judges who served his country with diligence and dedication. We shall miss his wise counsel. RIP my Lord.”
Gicheru served as Kenya’s Chief Justice from 2003 to 2011 when he retired and handed over to Dr. Willy Mutunga.
He had a lengthy career in public service, which started when he was appointed a District Officer in Wajir.
He later worked as a Senior State Counsel in the Office of the Attorney-General and as an administrative officer in the Office of the President before joining the Judiciary as a judge of the High Court of Kenya in 1982.
He chaired the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the disappearance and subsequent killing of Foreign Affairs Minister Robert Ouko.
