President William Ruto has welcomed the proposal by Chief Justice Martha Koome to have a sit down with the executive aimed at addressing the recent conflict pitting the two arms of government.
Speaking in Tinderet, Nandi County, Ruto affirmed that he was ready to engage all arms in a bid to reach a consensus on how to deal with judges he accused of sabotaging government policies through court cases.
Despite concerns of his continued onslaught targeting judicial officers, the President went on to reiterate his stance on dealing with corruption.
He revisited his earlier remarks stating that some figures had colluded with judges to thwart government projects including the affordable housing program.
“I welcome the conversation between the executive, the legislature and the judiciary and I am going to lead from the front,” Ruto said while addressing a function in Tinderet.
“We are going to have the conversation about the people who want the status quo in housing program, the people who want the citizens to continue paying rent in their estates.”
According to Ruto, cases of corruption and incompetence in the government if tolerated would lead to delays and derailment at the expense of Kenyans who desperately need speedy delivery.
Martha Koome and Ruto caught in a war of words
His remarks came a day after CJ Koome said that she was willing to meet the executive in a bid to resolve the stalemate surrounding the question of corrupt judicial officers.
Also Read: Martha Koome Speaks After Gachagua’s Threat on High Court Judge
In a statement on behalf of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), Koome decried continued attacks of judges from the executive.
While assuring that the JSC had sufficient mechanisms to take action on corrupt and incompetent judges, the CJ warned that the continued remarks would intimidate judges in their mandate.
Also Read: Martha Koome Advised on How to Counter Ruto’s Attacks
Koome highlighted some of the cases undertaken by the JSC as a proof that the commission was keen on addressing complaints lodged against judicial officers.
The cases, according to the JSC statement, included corruption, financial malpractices, forgery of academic certificates, and negligence among others.
Since the crossover to 2024, President Ruto has sustained attacks on the Judiciary, frequently voicing his concerns about the rate at which courts have halted key projects in his administration.
