Relief for Supreme Court judges as JSC halts hearings on petitions for their removal

JSC Vice Chair Isack Rutto cited interim court orders restraining the commission from proceeding with the three petitions brought before it.

The JSC’s decision not to proceed with the petition hearings brings a temporary sigh of relief for the Chief Justice and Supreme Court judges.

This decision was reached after a day-long meeting on Tuesday, during which the commission agreed to comply with court orders obtained by the embattled judges to halt their removal through JSC processes.

In a statement, the JSC vice chair revealed that a total of eight petitions—six of them filed by Supreme Court judges—led to the issuance of interim conservatory orders barring the JSC from further processing the cases.

These petitions, if heard, would have required the Supreme Court judges to respond to allegations of incompetence, misconduct, and misbehaviour.

The Supreme Court judges moved to court seeking the suspension of JSC proceedings on the grounds that the commission lacked the constitutional mandate to handle claims against them.

The petitions for the removal of Supreme Court judges were filed by lawyers Nelson Havi and Ahmednasir Abdullahi, along with former Rarieda MP Raphael Tuju. They accused the judges of gross misconduct and incompetence.

However, the Judicial Service Commission maintains that it will "defend the matters in court and assert its mandate to exercise its constitutional functions under Articles 168, 162, and 252 of the Constitution," which outline the circumstances for the removal of judges, the roles of the JSC, and the commission's independence.