LSK vs Judiciary: Lawyers accuse courts of failing Kenyans
Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Faith Odhiambo (centre). She is flanked by LSK Vice President Mwaura Kabata and other colleagues during a press briefing on November 20, 2024.
You have failed Kenyans.
This was the summary judgment of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) to the Judiciary.
In a scathing critique of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) on Wednesday, the LSK — through its president Faith Odhiambo — said there were credible allegations of institutionalised corruption within the Judiciary, which was increasingly undermining public confidence and trust.
Ms Odhiambo said there were complaints of “unfettered bribery and unethical conduct” by judicial officers, which she said has continued to weaken and undermine the justice system, and at the same time erode the credibility and effectiveness of the Judiciary.
“Surveys and persistent complaints from our members point towards a complacent Judiciary that cannot defend itself from allegations of runaway corruption within its ranks,” she said.
The LSK president further said the Judiciary had failed to defend the 2010 Constitution and uphold the rule of law, amid rising cases of abductions, abuse of state power, extra-judicial killings among other ills.
“We have effectively returned to the era of unaccountable state power, extra-judicial killings, abductions, corruption, weaponising investigative agencies for political purposes, undermining media freedom and insidious overbearing hand on organised civil society organisations,” Ms Odhiambo said, adding that all this was happening on the backdrop of diminishing confidence in the Judiciary.
The criticism comes in the wake of the Judiciary’s 2024 State of the Judiciary and Administration of Justice Report (SOJAR), where Chief Justice Martha Koome highlighted the progress made in the past one year including reduction of case backlog, timely resolution of cases and use of technology to revolutionise justice delivery.
“We demand that the Judiciary must rise up to give the constitution its essence and substance in achieving the objectives of nation-building, state accountability and the rule of law,” she said.
However, she decried inadequate funds allocated to the Judiciary every year, saying the underfunding limits its capacity to meet the demands of the institution.
