Judging Migai Akech: He wanted to be judge but was judged by social media posts

Sunday, March 08, 2026

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Prof. Migai Akech during the interview at his office in Nairobi on March 3, 2026.

Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group

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Imagine facing an interview panel while pursuing a lucrative job then the tone of your social media posts becomes a point of discussion.

That is what University of Nairobi (UoN) law lecturer Migai Akech encountered as he sought to be a Court of Appeal judge in January.

“I’m an active citizen,” he replied. “And I think democracy cannot be practised unless citizens are active. Citizens being active means we must engage and we must engage robustly.” “My [academic] writing is very balanced, and I write with a lot of joy. And in the context of the social media, there has to be some humour. There has to be a way that we communicate so that we are able to bring people together so that they talk about issues. So, that’s what I’m trying to do. Have I disagreed with advocates? I don’t think it is advocates. I think there is only one individual that I have disagreed with. But we sat down. I went to his office – because this was somebody that was my teacher as well – and I told him, ‘I think I went overboard. Please forgive me.’ And I think the matter ended there.”

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