Rarieda Member of Parliament, Otiende Amollo, dismissed the meeting between President William Ruto and Chief Justice Martha Koome, deeming it as unfortunate, unnecessary, and ill-timed.
In a media interview on Tuesday, January 23, the MP said that the authority to increase the number of judges in the country’s top courts and allocate budgets lies within the purview of Parliament.
“All those things listed are things that should have been done by parliament. Increasing the number of judges requires an amendment of the law.
I am in the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee, and we recently did that, you don’t need to go to the president to do that,” Amollo said on Tuesday in an interview with KTN News.
“Increasing the allocation to the judiciary is done by parliament, not the executive and what the judiciary wants to do with the allocation is up to them.”
Also read: Details of Ruto, Koome Closed Door Meeting
The lawmaker labeled the meeting as an interference with the judiciary’s functioning and independence saying CJ Koome and her deputy Philomena Mwilu should have boycotted it.
“I had hoped that the Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice were not going to honour the invitation for the meeting with President Ruto”said Otiende.
He further asserted, “There is no such thing as interdependence in the arms of government. Each of them plays a distinct role, and oversight is very clear.”
Also read: Martha Koome Advised on How to Counter Ruto Attacks
In support of Ruto, Koome Meeting
On his part, Eldas legislator Adan Keynan expressed his approval of the progressive nature shown by Chief Justice Martha Koome.
He commended the CJ for her willingness to meet with the with the president, stating that consultative approach as well as accommodating each other was what the country requires.
“That antagonistic approach has never worked. You require the judiciary as much as you require the executive, and this is why the interdependence role of these institutions cannot be over emphasized.” said the legislator.
He had previously stated that he did not agree with the government’s blanket condemnation of the judiciary saying that there are some judicial officers who are highly capable and free from corruption.
The MP however, also acknowledged the serious plight of corruption in the country. saying that the Judiciary was a reflection of the Kenyan tribe and that there was indeed “serious corruption within the entire legal fraternity.”
Keynan called for “reasonableness of judicial decisions” stating that the judiciary was a supervisory authority on anything that comes from parliament.
