KPTJ in the News

Verdict on Kenya’s presidential election petition: Five reasons the judgment fails the legal test - The East African, April 20, 2013

Justice Robert H. Jackson once said of the US Supreme Court: “We are not final because we are infallible, but we are infallible only because we are final.”

The infallibility that finality brings may, in the long view, be one of the few merits of the Supreme Court’s much awaited judgment on the presidential petitions.

Etiquette for Tribalised Nation by Sitawa Namwalie

We all agree tribal feelings and divisions have never run so deep in this country Kenya.  Many of my friends are walking around on tip toes, not sure what they are feeling.  Not sure what to say to their ester while bosom buddies who happen to be from different ethnic groups.  The ethnic gap between us bristles with suspicion, distrust, stereotypes, fear, anger, disappointment, hubris, all the way to all out hatred.  And yet we must live together.

Kethi Kilonzo Gets Candid On All Matters Law

Interview

An advocate of the High Court, Kethi won the hearts of many Kenyans on social media and was the talk of town during the presidential election petition hearing by the Supreme Court. Last week she appeared on the acclaimed KissTV primetime news JSO @ 7 hosted by anchor John Sibi Okumu. Here is the transcribed interview by reporter Sharon Macharia

For the record…by Muthoni Wanyeki

Dear all.

The news of protest was expected.  Half the country is feeling betrayed, let
down, with nowhere to go from here.  The news of the police behaviour was
also expected…why would they have learnt anything from 2007/8 when they
were never held to account for it?

The deaths are tragic.  And everyone who dies should be remembered as a
casualty of the IEBC, a casualty of the Supreme Court.

In Praise of Feelings by Godwin Murunga

There are two statements I heard in the last several weeks that simply are infuriating. The first one has been that whatever happens, all Kenyans have won. Well, I did not win anything. They won and I lost and they don’t care about me/us or our feelings.

Wanjiku is dead but who will mourn her when everyone wants to move on? - Daily Nation, March 31, 2013

Wanjiku died last week. There was no state funeral, no wreaths, no eulogies.

She was buried in a quiet ceremony in her small plot of land.

They say she died of a broken heart. A note was found next to her body. It read: “I am tired.”

When the villagers learnt of her passing, they shrugged and said: “That is life. We need to move on. We can’t mourn that which was never ours.”

Petition hearings showcased traits of a good lawyer - Daily Nation, March 29, 2013

If you’re shopping for a good lawyer, look no further. The just-ended Supreme Court presidential election petitions hearing showcased some of the country’s star lawyers.

The hearing was a spectacle of lawyerly, and not so lawyerly, skills and characteristics.

It was a live show and a parade of adversarial talents that you’re unlikely to see anywhere else, in one short week and on national television.
But just what constitutes a good lawyer?

The parties have spoken and it’s now the turn of the court to speak - Daily Nation, March 29, 2013

An important week in Kenya’s political history comes to an end Saturday with the expected judgment by the Supreme Court in petitions filed by Cord Coalition leader and Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, and the civil society-fronted Africa Centre for Open Governance, challenging the results in the March 4 elections in which Uhuru Kenyatta was declared the winner.

The Supreme Court, exercising special powers conferred by the Constitution, will decide whether Kenyatta was validly declared the winner of the elections.

It’s Kenyans’ fundamental rights under attack, not sovereignty of their country - Daily Nation, March 21, 2013

Writer James Kimalel should have perused the new Constitution before penning his opinion piece titled “Foreign interests funding civil society to compromise Kenya’s sovereignty” (DN, March 19).

He would have swiftly abandoned his inaccurate speculation that Kenya’s sovereignty is under attack when cases are filed regarding the electoral process.

Article 1(1) of the Constitution says: “All sovereign power belongs to the people of Kenya and shall be exercised only in accordance with this Constitution.”

Capital FM News, July 29, 2012 - IEBC told to cancel controversial tender

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 29 – Pressure mounted on Sunday for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to cancel the controversial Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) system tender. Narc Kenya Chairperson Martha Karua called for fresh tendering process so that Kenyans can follow it openly.