We all thought judges are meant to be unbiased and impartial, didn’t we? Well, one Justice James Wakiaga might have just crossed the line.
Speaking in court today during the hearing of the Monica Kimani murder case involving Citizen TV journalist, Jacque Maribe and her fiance Jowie Irung, Jugde Wakiaga referred to the first accused, Jowie Irungu as a ‘woman eater.’
VIDEO: Judge James Wakiaga labels Jowie a 'male version of a slay queen' and a 'woman eater'. pic.twitter.com/R6QINq8PBZ
— NTV Kenya (@ntvkenya) October 30, 2018
“He is a male version of slay queen which for lack of better terminology, I’ll call a woman eater,” said Jugde Wakiaga when giving his ruling.
According to reactions from KOT, Justice Wakiaga may have just crossed the line when he denied Jowie Irungu bail and proceeded to label him ‘slay queen’ and ‘woman eater.’ In fact, some people think that the judge showed a lot of bias towards Mr. Irungu in his ruling.
Seems the verdict is already pre-meditated!
— Jim Okore (@jim_okore) October 30, 2018
Honestly that was harsh…I mean, we already know that. He is a Judicial officer and as such he ought to operate from a neutral position. Such a statement could be interpreted to mean that the Jurist is prejudiced against the accused.
— Dzaddy Manoah™PhD, GHC, CRE, ETC (@omusoti) October 30, 2018
The guy is soo biased in his first ruling… he is falling captive to the media and Itumbi influence… This Jowie will never get a fair trial ..
— wahodr (@BensonWahome3) October 30, 2018
The judge seemed sympathetic towards Jacque Maribe while at the same time being prejudicial towards Joseph Irungu. Sad how we might not see #justiceformonicakimani being served well.
— Dzivula Mautuh Gube (@DzivulaGube) October 30, 2018
The judge hasn't treated Joseph Irungu with some dignity. Using sexist language to describe the accused cannot be accepted
— The_Ochieng (@OchiengObura) October 30, 2018
The words used by Justice James Wakiaga to describe Joseph Irungu aka Jowie are unprofessional and reckless to say the least.
I think Jowie should sue for defamation.— Cyruz Kariuki 🇰🇪 (@KariukiCyruz) October 30, 2018
Judge Wakiaga has become the lawyer of Jacqueline Maribe. He is not unbiased on this. Seems like he is determined to let her go scot free. Not interested in @ODPP_KE arguments.
— Robert Alai (@RobertAlai) October 24, 2018
The first accused, Joseph Irungu however denied bail with Judge Wakiaga saying that the very fact that he had access to firearms and displayed his love for them publicly could intimidate the witnesses in the Monica Kimani case. Wakiaga also said that if released, Jowie, having shot him was a threat not only to himself but also the public.
Additionally, the court ruled that Mr. Irungu had extensively traveled to Middle East with no known assets in the country thus his willingness to surrender the passport was not a guarantee that he would not jump bail or abscond court.
Jowie Irungu will now remain in custody at the Industrial Area Remand Prison throughout the trial.
Do you think the remarks of Justice Wakiaga were defamatory?