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{
    "id": 1087362,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1087362/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 139,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Murkomen",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 440,
        "legal_name": "Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen",
        "slug": "kipchumba-murkomen"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Speaker, the issue of Kericho Law Courts has been thorny in Kericho and for all practitioners in the South Rift. The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) Chapter in Kericho County have been petitioning the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to take action. A lot of outcry has come from lawyers, litigants and citizens from that area. You can imagine the closure of the law courts from 5th March, 2021 up to now and the backlog that has ensued as a result of the same. The information I have is that, apparently, the Kericho Law Courts building was condemned by Government officials responsible for oversighting buildings in the country. You can imagine people who have petty offenses related to small issues like misdemeanors and they are all being held in remand because they do not have Kshs500 or Kshs1,000. They are people who, if they had gone to court, some would have been sentenced to community service. Some would have been asked to pay Kshs500 or Kshs1,000 or something of that sort and be freed. Now these people are being denied their rights under Chapter 4 on Bill of Rights of our Constitution. Madam Temporary Speaker, I think this is very serious. I hope Sen. Omogeni who is a senior counsel will take this thing very seriously with the Committee on Justice, Legal Affairs and Huma Rights and invite the JSC. I read a story in the newspaper that the Chief Justice, less than a month or two since she came to office was complaining that JSC officers are being invited to various committees of Parliament. First, I do not want to give credibility to newspaper’s stories. However, if that is true because it was a headline story, I hope that Madam Chief Justice will separate her responsibility as the President of the Supreme Court and as a judge and understand her role as an administrator and the Chair of the JSC. It does not mean she has to be there herself to answer the questions. The Registrar or the Vice-Chair of JSC can come. These are serious issues and JSC should be interacting with Parliament as much as possible because it is where we discuss matters of recourse allocation and improvement of the Judiciary infrastructure. There is a part of the Judiciary that is not concerned with separation of powers which, basically deals with administrative and infrastructure issues. The other part where you cannot dictate the decision of a judge is when she is sitting as a judge of the Supreme Court. That is a different decision. I am glad CJ believes in the bottom-up approach of resolving cases in court. That is the right direction. From the President of the United States of America (USA), CJ of Kenya and the ‘hustler nation’ in this country, the bottom-up approach is the only way of solving this problem. Madam Temporary Speaker, in a bottom-up approach style of management, I want her to deal with this issue of Kericho County expeditiously. Even before the The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}