Jubilee Party has pulled some crude manoeuvres which have now ensured that President Uhuru’s contested win is protected from Chief Justice Maraga and Deputy Chief Justice Mwilu.
While the party strongly opposed and voiced concerns after the Supreme Court nullified the win of President Uhuru terming some actions by IEBC illegal and irregular, the ruling party has upped the game this time reaching out to key judges, isolating the CJ and DCJ while at the same time intimidating some of those believed to be threatening the Presidency of Uhuru.
Judiciary chief of Staff Duncan Okello and the Registrar Esther Nyaikaki have already received their share from Wanjigi to make sure they don’t lock out any petitioner who files their case past deadline and forge more documents to assist in nullifying Muthamaki’s win.Tuko macho pic.twitter.com/ubVDES4RRv
— NrbBusinessCommunity (@NjugiFrank) November 8, 2017
Through the Fazul Mohammed led NGO Coordination Board, the government has reigned hard on civil society and demanded that they operate within some rules which Jubilee could have used to manage them.
The ruling party also believes that the Judiciary has some senior activists in its ranks, senior of them being the Chief of Staff, Duncan Okello who was brought in from the civil society by former CJ Willy Mutunga. Duncan has been the subject of targeted attacks from those believed to be speaking on behalf of the Jubilee party and the Presidency.
Okello is one of those who are going to be subjects of attacks this week as the Supreme Court convenes a pre-trial hearing for the Presidential Petition.
The Registrar of the Judiciary Anne Amadi and her junior at the Supreme Court Esther Nyaiyaki are also going to be targets of state threats and intimidations. The duo have now deployed extra levels of security while going slow in most of their dealings at the court.
The attack on the Deputy Chief Justice’s driver sent a strong message to the staff of the Judiciary who now fear for their lives. Top judges believe that the men who attacked the driver and bodyguard of the DCJ were not joking as they are believed to be highly trained assassins who were going for the Deputy Chief Justice and not the bodyguard.
Shooting the bodyguard on the arms and hip made the judges believe that the assassins were colleagues of the bodyguard from the police who were not willing to neuter their colleague but were just out to disarm him while the real target of assassination on that day was the top judge.
READ: Civil Society Hold Peaceful Protests, Demand Prosecution Of Election Offenders
Already even before the Supreme Court hears the petitions filed at the top court, it is believed that Judges Lenaola, Wanjala and Ibrahim have crossed over and will rule in favour of upholding the win of President Uhuru. Judge Ibrahim is suspected to be planning to stay away citing his sickness as the reason. Jubilee has already isolated the CJ and his Deputy strategically while also reaching out to them.
The reach-out is suspected because in all the attacks of staff of the Judiciary after the submission of the petitions, the two top judges have not been subjects while Esther Nyaiyaki and Duncan Okello have been attacked.
Staff at the Judiciary believes that the CJ is actively being part of the efforts to sideline Duncan Okello who was only to stay for few months after the retirement of Willy Mutunga. He was later expected to join the former CJ as one of his staffers as he is provided with such benefits after retirement.
READ: How the Supreme Court Judges Played Jubilee in the Presidential Petition
The CJ believes that Duncan Okello has been a key cog who has blocked him from having his own people in the senior echelons of the Judiciary. He has apparently been slow in approving any new staff to the CJ’s office.
During the reign of Willy Mutunga at the Judiciary, Duncan Okello together with Kwamchetsi Makokha and Ahmednasir Mohamed used to call the shots at the Judiciary prompting a pro-conservatism wing of the JSC to be so determined in reigning in on the civil society at the judiciary.
Many who celebrated the Judiciary for cancelling a presidential election will be disappointed with the Supreme Court this time around as the Supreme Court as currently constituted is facing extreme threats that it is unlikely to be ambitious with it’s ruling this time around.
One judge who is going to play a key role in the Jubilee’s determination to contain the Supreme Court is the President of Court of Appeal, Paul Kihara Kariuki who is also a grand son to the late Mbiu Koinange.
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