Chief Justice Martha Koome wants Uhuru impeached with only two months to the elections
Chief Justice Martha Koome wants President Uhuru Kenyatta impeached only two months to the general elections.
Chief Justice Martha Koome has asked the Court of Appeal to declare that President Uhuru Kenyatta violated the Constitution by failing to appoint six of the 40 judges nominated by the Judicial Service Commission.
In an appeal against the High Court ruling, CJ Koome wants the appeal court to declare President’s refusal to appoint the six judges unconstitutional.
The High Court had directed the President to swear in the six judges, failure to which, the CJ should do so.
The CJ, however, in the appeal case has refused to take up the role and instead seeks the court’s declaration that the President has violated Articles 3(1) and 166(1)(b) of the Constitution or any other order that secures direct accountability of the President.
“It is proposed that the court makes a declaration that the President… is in violation of Articles 3(1) and 166(1)(b) of the Constitution.
A declaration that the appropriate remedy for the violation of Articles 3(1) and 166(1)(b) of the Constitution is the impeachment of the President or any other order that secures direct accountability of the President,” Koome said in the court papers.
Even if the President is found to have violated the Constitution by the appellate court, the planned impeachment may not proceed because it is a lengthy legal process and the President is two months away from the end of his tenure.
In addition, Parliament has been adjourned indefinitely in preparation for the General Election on August 9.
Judges in the center of this legal tussle are Justices George Odunga, Aggrey Muchelule, Prof Joel Ngugi, and Weldon Korir whom the JSC had elevated to the Court of Appeal.
The others are chief magistrate Evans Makori and High Court deputy registrar Judith Omange.
The president turned down the appointments of the six judges because the NIS had warned about them being corrupt.
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