Two Supreme Court Judges have been accused of being in contact with NASA lawyers who argued its Presidential petition at the Supreme Court.
Executive Director of Angaza Empowerment Network, Derrick Malika Ngumu, a Mombasa based NGO filed a petition against the two Supreme Court Judges with the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
He wants JSC to investigate Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu and Justice Isaac Lenaola for gross misconduct and breach of Judicial Code of Conduct.
The two Justices ruled in favour of NASA in the Presidential petition challenging President Uhuru Kenyatta’s victory.
In his petition to JSC, Ngumu has attached extracts of phone records detailing the conversation between them and different NASA lawyers and other individuals linked to NASA.
From the extracts, it is clear the two Judges engaged in talks with NASA’s legal team among them Lead Counsel James Orengo, Busia Senator Amos wako outside the courtroom and at a time when the petition was proceeding at the Supreme Court.
The two Judges are also alleged to have communicated with the Law Society of Kenya outside the courtroom.
In supporting documents filed by Ngumu to back his claim, they explicitly show the time, duration and location of the call at a time when the proceedings of the petition was ongoing at the Supreme Court.
It has also captured text messages between the NASA legal team and the two Judges.
The telephone records obtained from a specific provider give phone numbers and ID numbers of people involved.
In some instances, the evidence filed by the NGO show phone calls between NASA lawyers and the two Supreme Court Judges were in the same location at the same time.
DCJ Mwilu reportedly had telephone conversations and met Orengo, Senators Moses Wetangula and Amos Wako, all of whom were involved in the NASA petition.
“The DCJ had a meeting and a lengthy conversation with Wako on August 17, 2017. The meeting lasted for over two hours and primarily focused on the case NASA was to file before the Supreme Court on August 18 2017,” reads the petition in part according to the Standard.
“The DCJ didn’t bring to the attention of the Court or the parties to the case of any ongoing relations with Amos Wako or otherwise and specifically her prior meeting and lengthy communication with the Senator with regard to the case before the court.
This non-disclosure by the DCJ brings into doubt her impartiality, integrity, independence and exposes judicial misconduct on her part being a direct contravention of many sections of Judicial Code of Conduct.”
Mwilu is also alleged to have had a lengthy telephone conversation with Senator Orengo through a telephone number registered under his sister’s name, Margaret Orengo.
Margaret as cited by the petitioner is a tailor located along Luthuli Avenue, Nairobi.
“It is within proof that it was actually James Orengo in malevolent disguise, communicating with the DCJ using a number registered under his sister’s details,” adds the petitioner.
“The DCJ on August 18, 2017 met and had a lengthy meeting with Orengo at Menelik Hospital Kilimani in Nairobi. The meeting started at 1543 hours and ended and 2106 hours. In addition, the DCJ met Orengo in the company of Wetangula on the following dates, 6th, 7th, 18th at Menelik Hospital and on the 29th August at Sky View apartments in Kilimani, Nairobi.”
Justice Lenaloa was accused of having communications with LSK lawyer Steve Mwenesi outside the courtroom mainly through text messages.
The phone records adduced by Ngumu as evidence show that on August 16, Lenaola sends a message to mwenesi and he, in turn, sends two messages to respond to him [Lenaola].
He is also accused of holding talks with Wetangula and independent Presidential Candidate Dr Ekuru Aukot at time when the petition was ongoing and outside the courtroom.
By Pharis Kinyua. He’s an online Journalist and an author for Jamhuri News
