Duale defends CJ’s meet with Obama

Chief Justice Willy Mutunga’s trip to Senegal to meet the American President was funded by the US and will have no impact on the independence of the Judiciary, Majority Leader Aden Duale has said.

Reading from a statement by Dr Mutunga, Mr Duale on Wednesday told the National Assembly the agenda of the meeting was to discuss the role of courts in promoting democracy.

“I’m not privy to the identities of any other State officers who had been invited to meet the US President either in Senegal or Tanzania,” he quoted Dr Mutunga as having written.

Mr Duale was responding to a request by Mr Johnson Sakaja (TNA) for a statement on the trip.

Mr Sakaja had claimed that Dr Mutunga had compromised the independence of courts by attending the meeting.

He asked Mr Duale to clarify whether the meeting would have an impact on the cases facing President Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto at the ICC.

He was joined in this by Mr Mithika Linturi (Igembe South, TNA).

Mr Sakaja also asked whether it would be an interference in the independence of the Judiciary given that President Obama talked about funding of courts.

The matter caused a small amount of interest as Cord MPs tried to have Speaker Justin Muturi stop the discussion as it would amount to discussing Dr Mutunga’s conduct and behaviour without the required motion in the House.

The matter fizzled out when Mr Muturi and Mr Duale agreed that there is nothing wrong with getting funding from a foreign government. Mr Duale also shot down the idea that because President Obama spoke about the enhancement of the rights of gays and decriminalisation of the practice, it would happen in Kenya.