'It was unhealthy for Ruto to wage war on judiciary,’ Elachi says

Dagoretti North Member of Parliament Beatrice Elachi has termed President William Ruto’s recent attacks on the judiciary unhealthy.

Ruto has in recent weeks publicly attacked the judicial arm of government, accusing it of sabotaging his government’s agenda after court orders halting several projects that the Kenya Kwanza government intends to implement.

The tiff ended up with Ruto convening the leadership of the three arms of government for a meeting at State House, Nairobi on Monday to iron out issues. 

Elachi on Tuesday said the three arms of government should work in harmony for a healthy functioning of the country, saying the issue of corruption, which Ruto accused the judiciary of, should be dealt with in every government arm.

“It was very unhealthy in the month of January when you are starting the year you are in a war and a war you don’t understand. It doesn't matter if you are in the executive whether you are in the legislature or whether you are in the judiciary, corruption is a cross,” Elachi said in an interview with Citizen TV.

Monday’s meeting which was also attended by National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula, Attorney General Justin Muturi and CoG chairperson Anne Waiguru, aimed to develop anti-corruption strategies, strengthen accountability, and streamline service delivery for Kenyan citizens, State House spokesperson Hussein Mohamed said.

In Elachi’s view, such discussions should also involve Kenyans and not just the top leadership of the government.

“For me, that should be a discussion for all Kenyans. It is not a discussion for the top alone,” the Dagoretti North MP said.

Elachi argued that while the three arms of government are independent, they can work together without supremacy battles.

“These three arms are supposed to be interdependent but work together for the sake of our country. But it did not mean one arm should be more powerful than the other arm,” said the legislator.

Following Monday’s meeting, the State House announced that Ruto, Muturi, and Koome reaffirmed their commitment to upholding the rule of law, institutional independence, and unwavering respect for court decisions.

The executive and legislature pledged to support the judiciary's request for additional budgetary allocation, which includes provisions for the recruitment of 25 judges for the High Court and 11 judges for the Court of Appeal, as well as resources to complete the vehicle leasing programme to meet the judiciary's transportation needs.

Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition leader, Raila Odinga, however, criticised the meeting, saying it was an irresponsible move.

"State House is the home of the executive. That is where the president resides. If there is going to be a dialogue over issues of governance, it should be held on a neutral ground," Odinga said on Monday.