Chief Justice Martha Koome has opened up on the circumstances that led to the appointment of the 34 judges, noting that she had to write to President Uhuru Kenyatta over the issue, before the appointments were formalized.
Speaking on Thursday during an interview on KBC, CJ Koome noted that after her appointment as Chief Justice, her first official function was attending Madaraka Day in Kisumu.
While in Kisumu, she visited the local courts and was concerned to note that the Court of Appeal had been closed for the last two years due to lack of judges.
In view of the above, she decided to reach out to the Head of State and seek an appointment to discuss several issues in the Judiciary.
“I wrote a letter to the President asking for an appointment to discuss the administration of justice…I listed three things; appointment of Judges, institutionalization of judiciary fund and lastly budgetary allocation of the Judiciary,” she said.
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CJ Koome during an interview on Thursday. [Photo: Courtesy]
According to CJ Koome, two days after sending the letter to the President, she was surprised to see a Gazette notice by the president appointing 34 judges.
“I was pleasantly surprised, in less than two days there was a gazette notice announcing that 34 judges had been appointed. I was happy and I thank the president, but it was bittersweet, as you know six of them were not gazette. I continue to plead that let the six also be appointed,” she said.
Regarding the remaining six un-appointed judges, CJ Koome noted that she will continue pushing for their appointment as stipulated in the Constitution.
“On 6 judges who were not appointed, I trust the stalemate will be cleared soon so we can move on and hire 20 more judges that we need.
She further noted that following the appointment of the 34 judges, administration of justice has been improved since there are more judges to hear cases.
