We Must Defend The Independence Of The Judiciary.

I have been following the attacks on the Supreme Court by Jubilee Party and l am shocked. If the Supreme Court Judges were bribed, President Uhuru would have made the transactions public and investigations would have commenced. President Uhuru has access to the military, the National Intelligence Service and Kenya Police Service. If money exchanged hands, it would be very easy for them to track it. If there is probable cause, a search warrant can be issued and the houses of the mentioned Supreme Court judges searched.

The hashtags and street protests are just sideshows and unnecessary distractions. They’re a nuisance and they will end up dividing Kenya even more. It’s also shocking to see how the police are treating Jubilee supporters with kid gloves. When NASA supporters exercised their right to protest, they were teargassed, beaten and some shot dead. Jubilee supporters lit fires on the Naivasha highway and harassed people while police stood by protecting them.

In 2014, I was accused by the government, through the National Security Advisory Committee (NSAC), of receiving money to overthrow the government, but my bank account contained no such funds. That story ran in the media, even though no evidence was produced, and my reputation was discredited. As a victim of fake news and false accusations by paid bloggers, l stand by the Supreme Court. What Jubilee bloggers and paid media are trying to do is discredit and intimidate the Supreme Court Judges before the election petition judgment is read in a few hours. Pure propaganda.

I don’t belong to either NASA or Jubilee, but l believe we must defend the independence of the judiciary. Our courts aren’t perfect, but they deserve our protection from angry, self-centered politicians. The independence of our courts is enshrined in the Constitution and in the recent past they have exhibited this independence by refusing to be swayed by self-seeking politicians.

The Supreme Court upheld President Uhuru Kenyatta’s election in 2013, so is he implying that he bribed the Judges to get that favourable judgement? Or is it bribery only when the judgement doesn’t favour him? President Uhuru has every right to disagree with the ruling, but trashing the court publicly is immature, shameful and demeaning the office that he occupies. CORD, now NASA, also attacked the Supreme Court after the 2013 decision, but their attacks weren’t as malicious and vengeful. Jubilee politicians have threatened to reduce the powers of the Supreme Court. A few misguided politicians even want the Constitution, a posterity document serving 48 million people, amended just because they’re upset by one ruling.

And the attacks don’t stop there. What’s more shocking is the case filed in court by a private citizen against the Supreme Court Judges. As part of the alleged evidence mentioned in this case are call logs. How did a private citizen manage to get access to call logs? Everyone has a right to privacy. Neither the government nor your mobile service provider have any business meddling in your life without probable cause and a court order. That petitioner is a lackey. The CEO of Safaricom, Bob Collymore, should explain how private call logs ended up in the hands of a citizen without a court order. That’s criminal. Either Bob Collymore denies the call logs’ legitimacy, or admits he has allowed the state and thugs to unlawfully access personal call data. We know, as a fact, that Safaricom refused to hand over call logs to the ICC when requested to do so. You may see this as a partisan issue, but unless we protect our privacy, the precedent set spells doom for all of us. We go back to the dark days of the Nyayo era.

Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga are past their prime age. 70% of Kenya’s 48 million people are under 35. We shall outlive both Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga. We must protect our future using TRUTH, not TRIBE. Defending the Supreme Court, as an institution, from bullying and harassment is ensuring respect for the rule of law and, one day, our children’s children will fully trust the courts and live to see the mighty and powerful jailed.

I wish Uhuru Kenyatta had used the same energy he is using against the Supreme Court to fight corruption and impunity.

#TeamCourage