BY SAM ALFAN.
Former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju wants former Attorney General Githu Muigai and Fred Ojiambo struck off the role of senior counsel.
Tuju through lawyer Gregory Odhiambo Ndege wants the two stripped of their titles for allegedly conducting themselves in a manner that would amount to disgraceful and dishonorable, and incompatible with the status of Senior Counsel.
“Therefore I urge the Committee to investigate the matter and take appropriate action against the Senior Counsels in question in order to uphold the integrity of the legal profession and in the process demonstrate that the Committee will act, in cases of misconduct, without fear or favour regardless of the status of the relevant members,” says former CS Tuju.
The letter stated that the firms of Kaplan & Stratton Advocates and Mohammed & Muigai Advocates, where the two are partners, committed perjury.
He accuses them of procuring signature by David Odongo of Affidavits the contents of which were unknown to him and were false.
Tuju alleged that the firms procured the signature of Odongo and inserted the same into documents prepared or finalized thereafter, yet the contents were unknown to Odongo.
He said the contents in the affidavits were false, yet they failed to explain the contents of Affidavits to Odongo before asking him to sign them.
“The complaint state that Affidavits prepared by the firms of Kaplan & Stratton Advocates and Mohammed Muigai Advocates are deliberately misleading and intended to pervert the course of justice in the matters before the court, contrary to the legal profession’s ethical standards and the principles of integrity, transparency, and accountability enshrined in the Constitution,” he said.
Tuju said the subornation of perjury constitutes an egregious breach of integrity and professional ethics and the two senior members of the bar were expected to uphold the highest standards of honesty and candor in their professional conduct.
The former CS said that advocates bear the ethical duty to tell the truth in court, while desisting from any negative conduct, such as dishonesty or discourtesy.
He added that the overriding duty of the Advocate before the Court, is to promote the interests of justice and the due functioning of the constitutionally established judicial process ensuring that the judicial system functions efficiently, effectively, and in a respectable manner.
“This is such a serious and unfortunate matter the Petitioner is compelled to, on behalf of the Petitioner’s Clients to bring it to the attention of this Committee because it is vital for Advocates, as key players in the legal justice system, to maintain a high standard of integrity, more so if they are senior counsel,” says Tuju through lawyer Odhiambo.
