Gachagua drops petition against Justice Esther Maina

After accusing Justice Esther Maina of corruption, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has ‘for now’ abandoned his intended petition against her. The DP praised the conversation on accountability between Chief Justice Martha Koome and President William Ruto in a statement sent from his office.
Through his director of communications, Njeri Rugene, Gachagua stated, “The Deputy President notes the current national discourse on judicial transparency and application of Article 10 of the Kenyan Constitution on the conduct of Judges and other Judicial Officers.”
“In this regard, the Deputy President will not be pursuing the petition at this time.” stated Rugene. He has asked every Kenyan to be in favor of this process.
The DP had promised to file the petition, claiming to have proof that connected Justice Maina to corruption.
Days before, President Ruto seemed to be warming up to Chief Justice Martha Koome’s invitation for tripartite discussions comprising the Legislature, Judiciary, and Executive.
Gachagua filed the petition because he said that Justice Maina had deemed his wealth to be the proceeds of crime without offering him an opportunity to refute his claims. The DP added that he has proof connecting Justice Maina to graft.
“We made an application to cross-examine the investigator, against the rules of evidence where who he alleges must prove, and she refused because she knew there was no case,” he said.”Kenyans with petitions are welcome to submit them.Gachagua said, “I ask willing Kenyans to join me on Thursday so they can process this petition.”
Judge Maina ordered Gachagua to forfeit KSh202 million since it was the proceeds of corruption in July 2022, months before the elections. She claimed the congressman was unable to provide evidence of how he raised the funds.
The case originated from the Assets Recovery Unit’s large, suspicious debit transactions of KSh7.3 billion that were made on Gachagua’s three personal accounts.
Gachagua pledged to appeal the ruling, calling Justice Maina biased, and filed a stay of execution request with the Court of Appeal.The Anti-Corruption Court dismissed the Kenya Kwanza Alliance’s KSh7.3 billion corruption prosecution in November 2022 due to a lack of evidence, several months after the party had won the election.
Following President Ruto’s attack on the judiciary, the Deputy President accused the Law Society of Kenya of hypocrisy for holding protests and casting doubt on their purported silence during legal violations under the previous administration.
“Time to get to work now. Upon assuming office, the President showed great kindness for the judiciary. They remained silent during President Kenyatta’s refusal to name the 21 judges, and they remained silent during illegal deaths.They are coming out right now, according to Gachagua.