Justice Lenaola fights back petition to eject him from office
By Mustafa Juma, March 14, 2025Supreme Court Judge Isaac Lenaola has fought back the petition seeking to remove him from office alongside six other Supreme Court judges.
Speaking at Embu University while delivering a public lecture on the role of the Supreme Court in Kenya’s democracy on Friday, March 14, 2025, Justice Lenaola said that misconduct should be individual since the oath of office is not taken together.
Former Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Nelson Havi has sustained his onslaught on the Judiciary for the past few months and has been calling for the removal of Chief Justice Martha Koome and all the Supreme Court judges.
Havi filed a petition to the Judiciary Service Commission (JSC) early this year and urged the Commission to compel President William Ruto to form a tribunal and begin the process of firing the seven, accusing them of gross misconduct.
Lenaola on removing judges
However, Justice Lenaola says anyone seeking to remove the Supreme Court judges from office must begin by proving their claim against each judge.
“Misconduct must be individual. When you take your oath of office, you don’t take it together; you take it as yourself, and you sign it as yourself. When I breach the oath, I signed the code of conduct as myself. So we are saying if you want to remove the judges of the Supreme Court, begin by proving your claim against each judge,” Lenaola said.
Absurdity
He went ahead to fault attempts to remove all the Supreme Court judges from office at once, stating that it will be absurd when they appeal against themselves should the petition to remove them go through.
According to Justice Lenaola, the law says a judge has the right to appeal to the Supreme Court should he/she get ejected from office.
“But if by chance all the Supreme Court judges are removed at the same time, suppose this petition goes through and we are all removed, the law says a judge has the right to appeal to the Supreme Court. Look at the absurdity of Supreme Court judges appealing against themselves, saying our removal was unconstitutional. That is the absurdity we are saying must be resolved,” he remarked.
Moreover, Lenaola said that he has no problem going home if someone proves that he is worthless, but their removal must be on very serious grounds.
“I have no problem going home if someone proves that I am bure kabisa (worthless), but removal of a Supreme Court judge must be on very serious grounds. It cannot be games on social media,” Justice Lenaola said.
JSC on way forward
Last month, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) issued the way forward regarding the ouster of Chief Justice Martha Koome and other judges regarded as unfit to hold office.
In a statement on Tuesday, February 25, 2025, JSC said it was unable to continue with the ouster proceedings following orders issued by the courts after eight cases were filed in the High Court.
The chief justice and the judges of the Supreme Court are facing ouster cases over allegations of incompetence, misconduct, and misbehaviour.
“Pursuant to Article 168 of the Constitution, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) received the above petitions which sought to remove the Hon. the Chief Justice and judges of the Supreme Court from office, on account of allegations of alleged incompetence, misconduct and misbehaviour,” JSC stated.
“The Petitions, among other orders, seek to restrain the JSC from further processing the petitions and/or requiring the Judges to submit responses to the various allegations as contained in the petitions. Consequently, interim conservatory orders were issued, barring the JSC from further processing the petitions.”
JSC said it is now restrained from processing the subject petitions or commenting on the ongoing court cases.
Mixed reactions
The move to oust the judges has sparked mixed reactions, with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua claiming that President William Ruto is behind the plot to remove Koome from office.
Speaking during a church service at AIPCA Antubetwe Kiongo Church in Igembe North, Meru County, on Sunday, February 23, 2025, Gachagua warned that Ruto should not set foot in Meru if Koome is ousted before her term ends.
“These Meru people have been taken for granted for too long. It must come to an end. Rais amepanga kufukuza Chief Justice Martha Koome. Ameanza na Rigathi Gachagua, amemfukuza. Akarudi akafukuza Mithika Linturi. Sasa amepanga njama ya kumfukuza Martha Koome. Amepanga pale kortini, anahonga watu kufukuza Koome,” Gachagua said.
“Anataka akifukuza hawa watu amalize biashara zote za watu wa Mlima Kenya. Lakini mimi nakwambia rais, ukifukuza Martha Koome, usikanyage hapa Meru. Ulifukuza Rigathi Gachagua watu wa Mlima wakanyamaza, ukafikiria ni waoga. Tunakwambia rais; wewe panga njama ufukuze Martha Koome na wewe ukae Nairobi usikanyage hapa Meru tena!”
Gachagua said he would lead demonstrations against the government in Meru in case the chief justice is removed from office prematurely.
“Huyu mama akifukuzwa, nipige firimbi mtoke kwa barabara. Mtatoka hamtatoka? We are not going to sit again as William Ruto destroys the leadership of the Mt Kenya region. It is too much. Pahali huyu rais ametufikisha sasa, it is too much.”