Three lawyers sue over President Uhuru Kenyatta's move on corruption
Lawyers Chege Kamau (left) and Jibril Noor at the Milimani Law Courts on Friday, May 15, 2015 after filing a petition challenging President Uhuru Kenyatta's list of suspected corrupt individuals, which he presented to Parliament on March 26. PHOTO | PAUL WAWERU | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The lawyers want an order stopping the Director of Public Prosecution from recommending the prosecution of any one based on the report.
- They argue that preparation and tabling of the report by the President was unlawful and accused him of trying to interfere with the independence of a constitutional body.
- Lady Justice Mumbi Ngugi scheduled the hearing for June 9.
Three lawyers have challenged the list of suspected corrupt individuals presented to Parliament by President Uhuru Kenyatta in March.
The three — Chege Kamau, Jibril Noor and Kipkemoi Ng’eno — argued in court that the President had no powers to present the names or to direct the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission to conclude investigations within 60 days.
“The EACC report tabled by the president in Parliament violated several provisions of the constitution and is a violation of the rights of people mentioned in it. It was a legality that should not be used to prosecute anyone,” said Kamau.
The lawyers want an order stopping the Director of Public Prosecution from recommending the prosecution of any one based on the report.
President Kenyatta, while addressing a joint session of Parliament on March 26, released a report by the anti-corruption commission containing a list of 175 names to be investigated for corruption.
The list had five Cabinet secretaries who have since stepped aside to allow investigations, 12 governors, several heads of government parastatals, senators and members of the National Assembly.
APPROVED PROSECUTION
Director of Public Prosecution Keriako Tobiko has so far approved prosecution of Murang’a Governor Mwangi wa Iria, Nandi Hills MP Alfred Keter and his nominated counterpart Sonia Birdi.
The lawyers, however, argued that preparation and tabling of the report by the President was unlawful and accused him of trying to interfere with the independence of a constitutional body.
“The president’s direction to EACC to conclude investigations within 60 days amounted to undue influence on an independent body. In any event, the report was authored by incompetent persons who lacked moral authority to author a report on corruption,” said Mr Kamau.
According to the lawyers, it was the commission who should have forwarded the report to the National Assembly and not the president.
Mr Kamau swore that the freedoms of those mentioned in the report are at risk if the DPP goes ahead to charge them before the legality of the report is determined.
“The mentioned persons rights were first breached by an incompetent body given that the EACC commissioners had wrangles and therefore lacked the capacity and moral authority to investigate corruption,” swore Kamau.
VIOLATING OWN RULES
The lawyers accused EACC of violating their own rules by not giving the mentioned persons a chance for a fair hearing before indicting them in the list.
Mr Kamau added that the recent occurrences within the commission, including the resignation of its commissioners, has led the public to lose faith in the institution.
The institution, therefore, did have the moral authority to continue investigating persons named in the report, he said
The lawyers are seeking a declaration that the president’s speech, in directing the EACC, was null and void.
They also want the court to declare that the EACC, as constituted at the time of preparing the report, was incompetent and seek an order stopping any intended prosecution until the anti-graft agency is reconstituted.
Lady Justice Mumbi Ngugi scheduled the hearing for June 9.
