Senior Counsel Ahmednasir Abdullahi has moved for the dismissal of a defamation case filed against him retired Chief Justice David Maraga arguing that it is defective.
Early this year, Maraga moved to court claiming that Ahmednasir defamed him by posting a tweet indicating that he condoned corruption in the Judiciary and at the Supreme Court.
In his petition, Maraga told the court that he is a respectable man who serves as an Elder of the Seventh Day Adventist church, adding that such remarks were intended to create a perception that he is a tainted man.
Maraga wants the court to compel the Senior Counsel to publish an official apology on two local dailies.
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In his response, the Senior Counsel poked holes at Maraga’s suit noting that it should be dismissed as it was filed when the accuser was still holding the Office of Chief Justice, which is a public office provided for in the Constitution.
According to Ahmednasir, the case is defective since his criticism was based on the Chief Justice as a public office and not as a private citizen.
“The tortious claim relates to his previous offices and not to him as an individual … a tort of libel that allegedly occurred during the tenure does not in law transit with him into retirement and is extinguished with the expiry of his tenure in the public and constitutional office he held,” Ahmednasir court papers read in part.
The case will be heard on June 9.
