President Ruto should be impeached for defying court orders - TISAs Diana Gichengo says

The national coordinator of The Institute for Social Accountability (TISA), Diana Gichengo says President William Ruto should be impeached for his defiance of court orders and attacks on the judiciary in recent months.

Ruto has mounted a war against the judicial arm of the government, accusing it of sabotaging his administration’s agenda. He has even vowed to disregard court orders he says are motivated by ‘judicial impunity’.

His defiance and attacks, which stem from recent court orders halting projects the Kenya Kwanza government intends to implement after legal challenges, saw Chief Justice Martha Koome speak out on Monday, warning that Ruto’s administration is setting up the country for chaos and anarchy.

According to the TISA national coordinator, politicians, including the president, who do not heed court orders should be removed from office because their posts are constitutional and thus their holders are bound by the rule of law.

“The statement by the judiciary yesterday was spot on and I hope the executive will heed; I think it is time we recalled the few members of parliament who are out there mobilising people to ignore court orders,” Ms Gichengo said on Tuesday.

“Even the president should be impeached for such callous behaviour. What are you ruling us on if you tell us to disregard the Constitution?”

Gichengo who spoke on Citizen TV’s Day Break program noted that the suspension of government initiatives which did not follow the right legal procedures does not warrant the executive’s attacks on the courts and judges.

“Just because of a few decisions that were rushed in parliament, the judiciary that is not under the direction of anyone decides to protect the constitution and the people… Those of us who appear before those courts for constitutional matters go there because the constitutional matters are being violated by the executive and parliament,” she said.

On Monday, CJ Koome warned that if the Kenya Kwanza administration’s disregard for court orders is allowed to continue, the country will be plunged into a constitutional crisis.

“It is regrettable that the leadership of the executive and legislature in their recent public declarations have threatened not to obey court orders. These threats and declarations are extremely serious and a monumental assault on the Constitution, the rule of law and the very stability of the nation and can lead to chaos and anarchy in our motherland,” Koome told a media conference.

“The declaration that they will no longer obey Court Orders and the subsequent actual defiance of the orders granted by the courts are untenable and amount to contempt of court. Allowed to continue unabated, we are on the precipice of a constitutional crisis that can lead to untold civil strife. The Judiciary and JSC cannot countenance this and will not be part of it.”

Among the court orders which have sparked anger from President Ruto are the halting of a new social health scheme, a housing levy, the privatisation of 11 government parastatals, the rollout of the Maisha Namba project and the privatisation of the Mombasa and Lamu ports among other projects that the Kenya Kwanza government intends to implement.

Additionally, Ruto’s deputy, Rigathi Gachagua has said he is seeking the removal of Justice Esther Maina from office, accusing her of tainting his image by unceremoniously declaring his fortune proceeds of crime in a past court ruling.

But Koome said the decisions of a judge made in the course of the discharge of judicial function cannot be questioned except through judicial review or appeal.

“A judge is not liable in an action or suit in respect of anything done or omitted to be done in good faith in the lawful performance of a judicial function,” said the CJ on Monday.