Gladys Boss Shollei (GBS), the former judiciary chief registrar, was sacked in October 2013 amid controversy linked to corruption within the judiciary. All seemed well until questions arose on the expenditure on key infrastructure projects. She unsuccessfully moved to court to challenge her sacking and was instead, charged over procurement irregularities. She retreated to living a quiet life but is plotting a big comeback. Gladys spoke to our writers Sam Kiplagat and Ibrahim Oruko on what she has been up to.
What have you been unto since leaving the Judiciary?
I have taken off time from my professional career and am now doing everything I ever wanted to do but, which because of my work commitments, was no able to do. I spend a lot of time with my family. I have visited friends and made new ones who sympathised with my plight and also had time to make frequent visits to our farm in Uasin Gishu. The farm was somehow neglected in my absence. I also spend more time mentoring the youth. When I gave birth to our last born child, I went back to work after just 10 days and did not get time to rest. After my removal however, I now have adequate time for my children and the rest of the family. Im enjoying the free time.
Has the public seen the last of GBS?
No. If I use the football match analogy, I should say that my life is at the half time point. I will come back for the second half after my rest and I promise you, it will be big, better and bolder. The lessons learnt means that I have become smarter. That said, I like serving the people and still have a lot of energy to do that.
Is your comeback in the Judiciary, possibly as Chief Justice?
I might go for a political seat though I am yet to decide because on ongoing consultations. What is certain is that I am coming back. I am looking at a position where I can make a difference to society. I have had a splendid career progression, making major contributions in my career in all the positions I have held. When I left the UN to go to the National Council for Law Reporting, it resulted in a major pay cut. This was because I wanted a challenge despite the low pay. I started the council from scratch and made it what it is today. We become the first African country to put our laws online. Nobody can take that away from me. I was deputy chief electoral officer at Interim Independent Electoral Commission of Kenya (IIEC), and what I did there stands out. We had 47 days to develop a totally new voters’ roll after the 2007 election infamy. We did it and against all odds, ran a successful referendum in 2010 where the losers conceded even before the final results were announced. That is an achievement I am very proud of and the key role I played in bringing back confidence in our electoral systems as the referendum attests.
Before that, I served as the Jessup International Moot Competition team coach. It’s the equivalent of World Cup for student lawyers. They appear before a mock International Court of Justice. We took home the African Cup five times during the finals usually held in Washington DC in the US. Among my students were advocate Elisha Ongoya, Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, Godfrey Musila, who became an expert in international law, Julie Soweto, Makueni MP Daniel Maanzo, Kiharu MP Irungu Kangata, and Ndhiwa MP Agostinho Neto.
More so, no one can take away what I did at the judiciary for the short time I was there. The judiciary transformation project we launched is a matter of public knowledge. The budget was quadrupled and the numbe of judges increased among other achievments. Don’t forget that I also oversaw the swearing-in of President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto.
So what happened at Judiciary? Were you a victim of men chauvinists scared of your rising star?
If you stand up for something, there will be people who will stand up with you and those who will be against you. If you stand up for nothing, there will be nobody against you and equally no one for you. There are those in the judiciary who mistook my self-confidence for arrogance. They thought that my ability to speak my mind freely, was some kind of insubordination.
Were you a powerful CRJ and why did you create enemies in the Judiciary?
Of course I was powerful, because there was a vacuum. First there was no deputy CJ for a while and the Chief Justice Willy Mutunga is a bit of a laid back person. He has subordinated himself to people around him who tell him what to do. Mutunga is very loud in complaining but does nothing to address the things he routinely complains about. Look at the newspapers and see how many times he complains about graft among the judges. Who is supposed to fix it? He, for example, complained about claims of bribery during the Magistrates and Judges Association elections but did nothing afterwards.
Before I joined the judiciary, I held him in very high regard. I regarded him in the same league as Raila Odinga, Martha Karua, Gitobu Imanyara, the late George Anyona, fiery lawyer John Khaminwa and Meru Senator Kiraitu Murungi, those who fought for the new constitution and the return of the multi-party system. But I was extremely disappointed when I finally worked closely with him, discovering he was not in that league. Under Mutunga, the Judicial Service Commission has been subjected to the highest number of litigation by its employees. The man is presiding over chaos.
Did your exit from the judiciary dent your image?
As unfortunate as the exit was, the events leading to my removal have actually given me a stronger personality. The exit afforded me an opportunity to assess my strengths and weaknesses. It really gave me a platform to test my inner strength. I would never have discovered this, perhaps and have the ability to sharpen them if this did not happen. I also got to know who my real friends were. There are those who supported me and of course others deserted me. By charging me in court, they thought they will subdue me. I believe they were scheming to subdue my inner strength. But I am waiting to see how the case will proceed because as a lawyer, I’m knowledgeable about procurement laws and how to procure items especially for a government agency. But for you to nitpick a section of one law and use it to charge me, while avoiding the known law in totality, is part of the scheme. I can assure you that at the end of my case, it will be very clear that the EACC does not know what corruption is. It will fold and be embarrassed by the outcome.
Is teaching law an option for you?
I love teaching because I have been there before I drifted to the public service. I see myself teaching in retirement. Classes have progressively become bigger and bigger. I hate marking exam scripts though. With larger classes, marking exams has become a more arduous task. I cannot mark 400 student scripts. In other societies, there are tutorial fellows whose task is to assist lecturers in examination marking. I do not have flexible time. But I still go out to give public lectures which I hope to continue in years to come.
What is your view of the lawyers and the legal training in general?
I will not go into the specifics of discussing lawyers. My greatest fear is not only confined to the law profession but in all fields. The standards of education have really declined. Institutions are mostly commercial concerned with money-making as opposed to offering quality education. Look at the institutions at the moment. Many are not conducive for learning. The educational structures, in my opinion, are ideal for older learners. But for the younger ones, it is really sad, because when do they socialise, or play games for example?
During our days, we had Christian Union, debating clubs, extra-curricular activities like football that helped mould us in many ways. But that has changed. Some university campus are situated in high-rise buildings leaving no room for the students to interact outside the classroom.
In legal training, universities have grown exponentially and too quickly. The population of students is also very high. There are those worrying cases where university campuses are found a top commercial buildings right within urban areas. The world over, universities boast around their faculties. It is the staff base that builds their reputation. The common case of a typical university in Kenya shows one has a branch in Lodwar and Nairobi. The outcome is that yes it is the same university but will produce different calibre of students depending on which campus the student has attended.
(+) Who is Gladys Boss Shollei?
1969: Born on January 30 in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu county.
1982: After her sitting her CPE at Hill School, Eldoret, she joined Loreto Girls in Matunda for her ‘O’-levels and later Moi Girls in Eldoret for her ‘A’-levels between 1985 and 1986.
1988: She joined the University of Nairobi, where she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in law in 1991.
1993: Attended University of Cape Town, South Africa for a Master’s in Law degree specialising in Maritime Environment Law.
2001: Joined the National Council of Law Reporting as an assistant editor, rising to the position of CEO by 2003.
2007: Went to the Jomo Kenyatta University of Science and Technology graduating with a Master’s degree in Business Administration.
2009: Joins the Independent Interim Electoral Commission as deputy chief electoral officer.
2013: Appointed Judiciary chief registrar.
Shollei is a career advocate with nearly 20 years of experience and also a Certified Public Secretary (CPS).
She is married to Standard Group CEO Sam Shollei and have three children.
Some of her professional memberships include Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA Kenya), the Kenya Women Judges Association, the Association of Reporters of Judicial Decisions (ARJD) and International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ).