[Supreme Court judges in a past event. They may have boycotted the join sitting due to fundamental constitutional reasons. Photo/Nation]
Chief Justice David Maraga and six other Supreme Court judges were conspicuously absent from parliament during President Uhuru’s address to the nation.
In a ceremony which was also boycotted by a host of opposition legislators, Uhuru maintained that he was still within the confines of the law.
But the absence of Maraga and the team is likely to raise questions with regard to legality of Uhuru’s decision to convene the joint sitting.
Traditionally, Chief Justice and other Supreme Court judges are supposed to attend such grand breaking ceremonies, a reason why their seats were persevered,
Although none of the judges has given a reason behind their decision to skip, analyst Dismas Mokua claims that their presence would have raised several constitutional questions.
“Constitutionally, the joint sitting should be addressed by a president who has been elected to be in charge of that particular parliament.
“Uhuru was only chosen in 2013 and the judge’s decision to boycott could have been guided by the fact that only a new president should convene such sittings when parliament commences,” he says.
Also, Maraga and his team have been subject to Uhuru’s public spat following the decision to nullify his victory.