Chitembwe wants top court to stop his removal from office

Suspended High Court judge Said Juma Chitembwe yesterday moved to the Supreme Court to challenge the recommendation of a tribunal to recommend his removal from office over gross misconduct.

In a notice of appeal filed at the apex court, Chitembwe wants the decision of the 12-member tribunal set aside and he be allowed to resume duty.

Through P.W Wena & Company Advocates, Chitembwe says he is dissatisfied with the findings of the Justice Mumbi Ngugi-led tribunal dated February 7.

“Chitembwe intends to appeal the decision/ findings that the judges of the tribunal conduct was in breach of the Judicial Service (code of conduct and ethics) Regulations 2020 and amounted to gross misconduct contrary to Article 168 (1)(b) and (e) of the Constitution and Recommendations to President Ruto that the judge be removed from office of the judge of the High Court,” reads the appeal notice.

The judge is expected to file the main appeal giving detailed reasons as to why he is seeking to quash the tribunal’s decision.

Last week, the tribunal recommended to President William Ruto to remove Chitembwe from the Judiciary after being found guilty of four out of six misconduct allegations levelled against him by his employer the Judicial Service Commission.

He was found guilty of acquiring a proprietary interest in a land parcel in Kindono, Kwale County, which was subject of a succession case pending before him.

Land sale

Chitembwe is said to have breached the Judicial Service Code of conduct for judges.

“There is sufficient evidence to prove that the judge acquired an interest over land parcel No.Kwale/Galu Kinondo/779 through his relative and proxy Mr Amana Saidi Jirani,” the tribunal said.

In the second charge, he was found guilty of discussing the withdrawal of a case at the Court of Appeal in Malindi at his residential home in Mountain View, Waiyaki Way, Nairobi, with Jane Mutulu Kyengo, Mike Sonko, Jimmy Askar, Amana Saidi Jirani among others. The case was between Pacific Frontiers Seas Limited and Kyengo.

During the meeting, they discussed the sale of the land in Kinondo Kwale for his personal benefit and the withdrawal of an appeal challenging his verdict on the property. The appeal had been filed against his own judgment.

“The judge grossly misconducted himself by advising the parties on the procedure to be followed to have an appeal which was filed against his own judgment withdrawn and promising to discuss the matter with other judges and judicial officers who were handling the appeal,” said the tribunal.

It was further found that the judge grossly misconducted himself by presiding over a bench in the impeachment case whilst being known and closely associated with Sonko, one of the petitioners in the matter.

Justice Chitembwe also held a meeting with Sonko during which he offered legal advice on the viability of an appeal and the proposed grounds of appeal against the judgment that upheld his impeachment.

The genesis of his tribulations are videos leaked by former Nairobi Governor Sonko in 2021, after losing bid to retain the seat following his impeachment.

Close to Sonko

The videos depicted the judge in a scheme to compromise an active court case involving property succession in Kwale County.

The misconduct charges stemmed from his participation in a television interview on November 18, 2021, where he admitted that the former governor was known to him and that he was his relative.

Sonko was one of the parties in a case heard and determined by a three-judge bench in relation to his impeachment as Nairobi governor. Justice Chitembwe was the presiding judge in the bench.

“The judge grossly misconducted himself by presiding over a bench whilst being known and closely associated with Mr Sonko, one of the petitioners,” said the tribunal in its report. The judge failed to disclose to the Chief Justice and his colleagues in the bench and the parties that he was personally known to Sonko.

In May last year, the Judicial Service Commission asked the then President Uhuru Kenyatta to form a tribunal to probe the judge’s conduct.