Activist Okiyah Omtata Challenges Appointment Of 7 Appellate Court Judges

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul, 27 – Okiyah Omtatah was in the corridors of justice Tuesday challenging the appointment of seven appellate court judges saying that there is no vacancy for them at the court.

The matter was filed under a certificate of urgency.

“The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has no capacity in law to advertise for six vacancies and appoint seven people,” he said.

He argued that all the vacancies needed to be advertised for the process to be lawful further calling for the seven to be barred from assuming office since the process was unconstitutional and questionable.

“Consequentially, it goes without saying that one of the seven new judges is a product of corruption and his/her appointment invalidated the entire recruitment process,”

Judiciary Chief Registrar Anne Amadi conducted the swearing-in ceremony of the seven appellate judges at State House Nairobi. They included lawyer Gachoka Paul Mwaniki and High Court judges Achode Lydia Awino, Ochieng Frederick Andago, Mativo John Mutinga, Ngenye Grace Wangui, Kimaru Luka Kiprotich, and Aroni Abida Ali.

President Uhuru Kenyatta urged the seven newly appointed Court of Appeal judges to serve the nation with fidelity, integrity, and without fear or favour.

Speaking shortly after witnessing the swearing-in of the judges at State House, Nairobi, on Wednesday, President Kenyatta asked them to deliver justice in a “speedy, accessible, and consistent manner”.

“As you take your seats on the bench, remember that Kenyans expect more now from the judiciary than ever before. Kenyans yearn for a judicial branch that delivers justice without fear or favour in a speedy, accessible, and consistent manner.

“Kenyans expect the authority that they have delegated to the judiciary to be exercised with utmost integrity and in keeping with the sacred principle of furthering the national good,” President Kenyatta said.

Noting that the appointment and subsequent swearing-in of the judges come at a unique time when the nation is gearing towards the coming general elections, President Kenyatta emphasized the need for the judiciary to play its role effectively.