BY SAM ALFAN.
Senior Counsel Ahmednasir Abdullahi has sued the Supreme Court of Kenya demanding Sh200 million for damages after the top court imposed an indefinite ban against him and his associates.
In a case filed before the East African Court of Justice, the outspoken lawyer wants to be paid Sh200 million for damages from the cases he had to drop after the court denied him audience.
It is his argument that the top court infringed on his universally accepted right to fair administrative action and right to access justice and fair trial.
He wants the regional court to direct the state to reverse the pronouncement made by the apex court on 18th January banning him and his law firm from appearing before the court.
“The action taken by the Supreme Court to ban me from practicing before it, is not an outcome of a judicial inquiry by the Supreme Court of Kenya in exercise of Fits jurisdiction as set out under Article 163 of the Constitution of the Respondent State or the Supreme Court Act, 2011 in that no contempt proceedings contemplated under Rule 57(4) of the Supreme Court Rules, 2020 were initiated by the Justices of the Supreme Court nor was the Petitioner ever notified of the intention to institute any contempt proceedings against me, ” he adds.
The lawyer was banned for post he has been generating against the Supreme Court, its leadership and membership over the years.
He wants the East African Court of Justice to declare that the state acting through the acts and omissions of its, judicial organs especially the Supreme Court violated its commitment to the fundamental and operational principles of East Africa Community in particular the principles of good governance, democracy, transparency, accountability, the rule of law and protection of human rights guaranteed under Articles 6(d) and 7(2) of EAC Treaty.
The Registrar of the Supreme Court Letizia Wachira wrote to him on January 18, allegedly on the instructions of the Judges of the court informing him of the ban.
He adds that move by Apex court to ban him from practicing before it for an unspecified period, amounts to an arbitrary action that is not anchored in any provision of formal law that regulates the practice of law in Kenya which must be accessible and precise and must comply with substantive requirements imposed by the rule of law and the principle of legality.
He further adds that the decision of Supreme Court which was arrived at by only some of, not all of the Judges of the court following an exchange of messages on WhatsApp between them, is so extreme and points to the existence of a mindset.
“That it is manifestly lacking in fairness and impartiality towards me in that the Justices of the Supreme Court did not apply any law before making the pronouncement contained in the letter dated 18 January 2024 whose effect is to violate my right to work and to gain my living by work which I have freely,” he said in an affidavit.
He adds that the Justices of the Supreme Court bend the law on scandalising the court in such a manner as to achieve the desired outcome of censoring him from airing dirty judicial laundry in public.
“I believe that Supreme Court manipulated the law on contempt of court in order to achieve a result that favored impunity and limited my freedom of expression in that the Justices of the Supreme Court do not have any powers to punish me for the social media posta, media interviews and write-ups that allegedly damage the reputation of the Justices of the Supreme Court and the Judges who have served thereon over the years, ” he says.
He said the alleged social media postings, media interviews and write-ups that are claimed to have damaged the reputation of the Supreme Court of Kenya and the Judges who have served thereon over the years concern the shortcomings of the Supreme Court of Kenya troubled institution that is riddled in corruption.
The lawyer noted that former Chief Justice David Maraga who became the 14 Chief Justice and the President of the Supreme Court of Kenya in October 2016 faced several petitions before the Judicial Service Commission.
He said the petitions wanted him removed from office for gross misconduct most notably one by Yusuf Dimbil who accused him of tribalism in that he appointed only members of his Kisii tribe in his office. The cases cited include that of his chief of staff, personal assistant, legal counsel, secretaries and other staff.
Another petition was filed by Busia Senator Okiyah Omtata accusing him of interference with the decisional independence of a Judge of the Employment and Labour Relations Court by removing a case file from the Judge concerned while judgement was pending delivery.
The activist had instituted a case challenging the decision of the government to re-advertise the vacancy for the auditor-general.
On the day the judgement of the court was scheduled to be delivered, the parties were notified that the judgement was not ready since the Chief Justice David Maraga had called for the file for unexplained reasons.
