• Maraga cited the recent eviction of thousands of families in Kariobangi on May 4 over the land said to belong to the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company.
• CJ said Uhuru's refusal to swear in the judges has contributed to the backlog of cases currently being experienced in the Judiciary.
Chief Justice David Maraga has pointed an accusing finger at the Executive led by President Uhuru Kenyatta over its 'worrying' trend of disregarding court orders.
Maraga cited the recent eviction of thousands of families in Kariobangi on May 4 over the land said to belong to the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company.
“Unfortunately disregard of court orders by the president is part of the pattern by the Executive...for example; despite an existing court order the government recently evicted over a thousand families from the Kariobangi area of Nairobi all amid the Covid-19 pandemic,” Maraga said.
The elderly, mothers and children were forced to spend the cold night outside despite the nationwide curfew order still in force.
The CJ said that the Executive has frequently been disregarding court decrees amounting to almost Sh1 billion issued in different courts, something which Maraga said did not bode well for the constitutional democracy.
Maraga said the government's actions were potentially a recipe for anarchy.
“The government has willfully neglected to settle dozens of court decrees issued by various courts against the government,” he said.
Maraga said that some of the decrees were issued several years back, some arising from personal injury claims by victims of road traffic accidents caused by government vehicles.
“In some of these cases, the victims have suffered paralytic injuries yet the government has failed to settle these decrees,” the CJ said.
He called on the President to instruct the Attorney General to take stock of all the court decrees and orders against the government and start the process of satisfying them.
The CJ added that some of the victims are unable to pay for nursing care, hence depending on their children and grandchildren to move them in or out of their houses.
Maraga accused President Kenyatta of refusing to meet him to discuss the stalled appointment of 41 judges proposed by the Judicial Service Commission.
Maraga said Uhuru's refusal to swear in the judges has contributed to the backlog of cases currently being experienced in the Judiciary.
According to the CJ, some of the land cases to be filed might be ruled in 2022 due to the backlogs
Maraga also said President Uhuru Kenyatta has ignored his several appeals to meet with him and raise the issues that are affecting the courts in the country.
"You know I have respect for you as our President, you also know that I have unsuccessfully sought an appointment with you to sort out these issues but it has been futile leaving me with no option but to make this public," he said.