- Justice Nduma Nderi said his court will not engage in flexing of muscles between itself and the Executive.
- The judge issued summons against Kinuthia yesterday directing him to appear in court.
Image: CHETI PRAXIDES
An employment court on Thursday castigated the Executive for always blatantly disobeying court orders, saying they are ever ‘endowed’.
Justice Nduma Nderi said his court will not engage in flexing of muscles with the Executive on which the court relies on to have its orders implemented.
“This court is not prepared to engage in flexing of muscles between itself and the ever endowed Executive,” judge Nduma said.
In the case, graduate officers got orders directing the National Police Service and National Police Service Commission to revert their remuneration to what they enjoyed under Job Group J.
“The court must be steadfast in ensuring the low and the mighty give deference to its orders and obey them without exception,” the court said.
He further ruled if the interim orders of the court are openly and blatantly defied, there cannot be any useful purpose for the court to give audience to a party who is only prepared to obey the court orders if they are made in its favour.
National Police Service Commission chairperson Eliud Kinuthia risks six months in jail for disobeying the order requiring him to reinstate graduate police officers’ salaries.
Justice Nduma issued summons against Kinuthia yesterday directing him to appear in court and show cause why he should not be cited for contempt of court and punished.
The judge said the court directed the commission to pay the graduate officers remuneration that they have been paying them since they were employed in 2013 under the job group J pending hearing of their case.
The court held that Kinuthia in particular is in open, blatant and wilful defiance of the court orders issued on December 15, 2021 by the court by failing to withdraw the letter it had issued reducing the grade and remuneration of graduate officers.
“To this end, in the event the respondents fail to comply with the said court orders this suit shall proceed ex-parte on June 14, 2022 on the merits of the suit,” the court said.
In the case, John Kariuki and Meshack Mutukho argue it was discriminatory for their salaries to be deducted without notice.
Through lawyer Danstan Omari and Charles Kanjama who represent different officers, the officers argue they joined the services as graduates having joined the service after successful completion of their undergraduate studies in their respective universities.
According to court records, the changes in payment affect all graduate officers who were recruited in 2013 and have not been promoted to the ranks of inspector.
In one of the pay slips attached in the court documents, the salary before deductions in October was Sh95,250 but in November, the pay was reduced to Sh51,000.
They further argued there was no communication that the NPSC would reduce his clients' salaries as the changes were only noted on their pay slips.
They want a declaration that the NPSC and the Inspector General of Police’s unilateral decision to reduce the pay of graduate officers recruited in 2013 from that of Job Group J to Job Group F offends the law on fair administrative actions.
They also want the court to quash the decision to reduce graduate officers' pay.
-Edited by SKanyara