Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga has revealed how Kamba politicians threatened him because he did not favour the community by building new law courts there.
Mutunga says the politicians and other leaders from the community sternly warned they would not protect him if he got into trouble.
He had announced the Judiciary would spend Sh688 million to build new courts in every county.
Mutunga says the leaders wanted Kitui, Machakos and Makueni to be prioritised over the rest of Kenya.
“The eminent members of the community did not tire of telling me that the protection of the community is critical for my security of tenure as Chief Justice,” Mutunga said in Kampala.
He was speaking at Second Bendicto Kiwanuka Memorial lecture held on Friday at the High Court in Kampala where the first chief justice of Uganda was kidnapped by Idi Amin soldiers.
He was killed but his remains have never been found.
Mutunga was explaining the pressures he endured as chief justice, especially from his own people.
“When I told them that I was the Chief Justice of all Kenyans, they warned me not to come to them when I got into political trouble. I retorted I would seek protection from the communities I build courts for,” he said.
Prior to Mutunga’s appointment as Chief Justice in 2011 there were only 17 High Court stations in Kenya.
He immediately established 14 new high court stations, bringing the number to 34, in 2014.
He also announced Judiciary would establish mobile courts to serve citizens who travel long distances to attend court cases,.
“Our priority was to build courts in the marginalized counties of Kenya,” Mutunga said on Friday.
“The external pressures, influences, and duress should be exposed when they occur… In my view Judicial courage means the defiance of pressures, influences, and duress.”
He said individual and personal courage of judicial officers is important.
“I believe the readiness to die for causes of judicial independence and integrity is the ultimate judicial courage,” he said.
