Maraga’s team makes last minute changes

November 27, 2017 8:44 AM

President Uhuru Kenyatta is expected to be sworn in on Tuesday

The Supreme Court of Kenya has made a number of last minute changes, with several members of staff who participated in the nullified August presidential petition being dropped.

The Sunday Nation reported sources indicating that at least six members of the technical team at the apex court had either been transferred or dropped entirely.

The changes came in the wake of protracted criticism directed at the Supreme Court over the manner in which some staff handled the first presidential petition.

Supreme Court registrar Esther Nyaiyaki, who was the main target of criticism, took a low profile and did not participate in the recently concluded presidential petition that upheld President Uhuru Kenyatta’s win.

Nyaiyaki’s deputy, Daniel ole Keiwua, was the one present in all the Supreme Court sessions, and was also responsible for receiving documents.

Apart from Nyaiyaki, several clerks and research assistants have been deployed to other judicial offices. One was reportedly deployed to Nakuru while another one will be working at the Kajiado law court.

The Supreme Court Judges, led by Chief Justice David Maraga, are currently working on the full and reasoned judgement.

It has also emerged that researchers, who assist the judges in writing the detailed judgement, were changed during the petitions challenging President Kenyatta’s win in the October 26 poll.

Each of the six supreme court judges had been given four researchers to assist in the drafting of the August petition, but none of them was allowed in the second set of petitions.

The researchers were reportedly dropped after allegations that they leaked the judgements to politicians.

When the Supreme Court ruling made its historic decision to nullify the August 8 election, NASA politicians had filled the court while their jubilee counterparts gave the ruling a wide berth – suggesting that the two parties had learnt of the majority’s decision.

President Kenyatta will be sworn in on Tuesday, ahead of the full ruling which is expected to come out on latest on 11th of December 2017.