This archive report was first published on 10 July 2020.
Published on July 10, 2020
Human rights activist Okiya Omtatah has taken the President Uhuru Kenyatta to court over the appointment of judges.
Omtatah wants the Employment and Labour Relations Court to determine whether nominees for appointment as judges should be presented to Parliament for vetting before the President can appoint them.
According to Omtatah, the High Court's ruling that President Kenyatta has no power to review or reject names forwarded to him by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) is flawed.
Omtatah argues that judges are public employees and disputes related to their employment should be determined by the Labour Court, not the High Court.
"The jurisdiction over all employment disputes, including that of judges, lies with the Labour Court and not the High Court," Omtatah stated.
Under Article 132 (2) of the Constitution, the President is required to appoint or dismiss a State or Public officer with the approval of the National Assembly.
The move comes amid a tug of war between President Kenyatta and Chief Justice David Maraga over the appointment of the judges.
President Kenyatta had declined to make the appointments, citing advice from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) that some of the judges had integrity issues.
