AG opposes Mwau’s plea for awards

Attorney General Githu Muigai yesterday rejected a plea by a former MP urging the President to reward the Tenth Parliament and Judiciary officials for their services to the country.

Prof Muigai said the court would be overstepping its mandate if it granted the declarations sought by former Kilome MP Harun Mwau, who served in the Tenth Parliament.

“The court will be overstepping its mandate if it gives the prayers sought by the petitioner. National honours are a sole discretion of the President,” Mr Moimbo Momanyi for the AG said.

Mr Mwau sought an outright declaration to compel President Uhuru Kenyatta to offer the awards of Chief of the Order of the Burning Spear (CBS), Moran of the Order of the Golden Heart (MGH) and Elder of the Order of the Burning Spear (EBS) to be conferred to ministers, MPs, judges and magistrates.

GROSS DISCRIMINATION

The former MP said the ministers, MPs, magistrates and judges had been left out by President Kenyatta’s government, which amounts to “gross discrimination.” “An element which runs through the guideline is merit and individual qualities, or achievements of heroism, sacrifice and patriotism,” the AG said.

“The discrimination is against the constitution and it is a violation and limitations of the rights of the persons. This petition is not justified in an open and democratic society like Kenya,” Mr Mwau said.

He asked the court to remedy the wrongs that the president has committed in dishonouring the aforementioned individuals stating that “the violations and breaches of their constitutional rights continues to be occasioned on Kenyans even in summary manner.”

He said that the MPs who some have recaptured their national assembly seats while others lost have been left out of the list of those to be conferred which is absolute discrimination.

“Members of the 10th parliament have been left out. I urge the court to offer these reliefs and compel the president to honour the members who are already entitled to this honours by virtue of holding their respective public office,” He held.

The former legislature termed the failure by the president to confer the awards as being unjust and unfair in the practice enshrined in the constitution.

However the AG dismissed the petition saying that there are certain qualifications that merit an individual to be awarded with such honours.

He cautioned that the constitutional Act stipulating the awarding of the honours did not make provisions for mass beneficiaries for the awards.

According to the AG the process of identifying such individuals who have exuded such qualities involved differentiating individuals based on their services.

“This does not amount to discrimination. The petition is an abuse of the court process and I urge this court to dismiss it with costs to the petitioner,” the AG held.

The case continues in May.