- Bomet resident Judge challenged a recommendation by the JSC that a tribunal be formed to investigate him
- JSC says his case is fatally defective and an abuse of the court process
A Labour court will on September 27 determine whether it will stop a tribunal probing the conduct of suspended judge Martin Muya.
The verdict was to be delivered on Friday by the Employment and Labour Relations court but was postponed.
The Bomet resident Judge moved to the High Court in June after the Judicial Service Commission recommended formation of a tribunal to investigate him.
But Muya wants no investigations carried out. He also sought an order to declare any tribunal formed by President Uhuru Kenyatta invalid.
Muya is accused of issuing a temporary order that led to the loss of Sh76 million by the NIC Bank. The order was in place for five months. He is also accused of inordinately delaying his decision in another case.
He, however, questions why the commission only considered one complaint about a delayed ruling, yet there had been two and he provided similar reasons for his actions in both.
Muya said the delay was prompted by a huge workload, having been the only judge at his workstation and having had to serve Kericho and Bomet.
The judge through lawyer Philip Nyachoti said the JSC constantly disregarded his right to fair administrative action during the hearings of the complaint against him. He was constrained to make his defence on factual matters relating to both cases because he did not have access to requisite files, he said.
Muya says the cases against him do not meet the threshold for removal of a sitting judge. He adds that the commission went beyond its mandate and convicted him.
But the JSC through lawyer Isaac Wamaasa said the court lacks the jurisdiction to hear the case and it should be struck out or dismissed.
“The case as filed by the judge is fatally defective and an abuse of the process of court. It lacks merit and reliefs sought are not capable of being granted,” read part of the court documents.
Muya claims that the entire proceedings demonstrated bias on the part of JSC to his detriment. President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed lawyer Paul Nyamodi as the lead counsel to assist the tribunal investigating the conduct of judge Muya.