Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s return from China on Tuesday has not been recieved well at the judiciary after what they did while he was away in China. In an interview with the Saturday Standard after attending a funeral in Muhoroni, Raila asked the Judiciary to review some of its rulings in keeping with fair trial.
This was in protest to the High Court for ordering former PS and anti-corruption czar John Githongo to pay former minister Chris Murungaru Sh27 million for defamation.
Githongo had expressed his displeasure at the ruling and said his commitment to the fight against corruption in Kenya remains unshaken.
“I am disappointed though unsurprised by the judgement that has emerged from the High Court with regard to the Anglo Leasing defamation matter brought against me by Murungaru. I, however, remain undeterred by distractions engineered by the very thieves stealing from Kenyans,” read his statement.
The African Union Special Envoy for Infrastructure accused the Judiciary of not supporting the government in the anti-graft fight.“How can a whistleblower be penalised for helping the country to save public funds? This is a mockery of the law,” Raila told Saturday Standard in Kisumu.
The case stemmed from the Anglo Leasing scandal in which the Mwai Kibaki regime lost billions of shillings in phantom security printing contracts.
The scam saw Anglo Leasing Finance paid Sh2.7 billion (at the current exchange rate) to supply the Kenyan government with a system to print new high-technology passports.
Raila also faulted the Judiciary for granting bail to suspects facing corruption and murder charges.
“The Judiciary is either with us in the resolve to tame graft or is lumped together with the opponents of the purge,” he said. He warned that damages slapped on Mr Githongo would undermine the spirited war against graft. “The law must protect whistleblowers,” he said.
“We want each of the three arms of government to execute their mandates in accordance with the law. They must uphold the legal values,” Raila added.
Should Githongo have been fined for exposing the scandal?