KISUMU, Kenya, Jun 3 – Chief Justice Martha Koome has reaffirmed her commitment to firm up the foundation built by her predecessors who worked under the Constitution (2010) through a bottom-up approach.
Koome, speaking during a tour of the Kisumu Law Courts on Wednesday, said Chief Justices Willy Mutunga and David Maraga brought about transformation in Judiciary, a path the Chief Justice said she would not deviate from.
“My vision is not any different from what was developed by the former Chief Justices, Dr Willy Mutunga, who came up with the judiciary transformation framework,” she said.
“Mine is a little different because it is a bottom up approach,” she said.
The CJ said she is ready to donate some of her powers within the Judiciary ranks without favour to make things work from the grassroots.
“I am the Chief Justice but I share the power of the Chief Justice horizontally, vertically, with all the parties, with all the people given the power to administer justice,” she said.
Koome said the framework laid the foundation for the reforms being witnessed in the judiciary, adding the delivery of justice to Kenyans will remain her key focus.
Reflecting on her immediate predecessor, Koome said Chief Justice Maraga sustained the judiciary transformation framework that focused on the delivery of justice.
Lady Justice Koome said the duo laid a strong foundation on which she will build further to make Judiciary a better place.
Addressing staff and children at the Kisumu childrens’ remand home, Koome said she will only inject what she termed as a bottom up approach to ensure delivery of justice to Kenyans is achieved.
In an apparent reference to criticism directed at the Judiciary, Koome said justice is a chain link and as such everyone must play their part without shifting the blame to another.
“Justice is a chain link, everybody is holding a apart of that chain and whoever drops it we all drop it, so we are not in the business of blaming anybody,” she said.