The High Court has overturned President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Executive Order from last year, which reorganized the government and placed independent institutions under the jurisdiction of the Attorney-General and Cabinet secretaries.
According to Justice James Makau, the President’s attempt to rebuild and reorganize autonomous offices was unconstitutional.
“I find that the petitioner has demonstrated that the Executive arm of the government intended restructures of the Judiciary, an arm of government, by placing various tribunals and the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) under various ministries and State departments is a threat to judicial independence,” Justice Makau concluded.
The judge pointed out that such reorganization would result in autonomous institutions being overwhelmed by individual ministries and departments, notably in terms of budgetary allocations.