JSC revokes 16 judicial vacancies for Court of Appeal, High Court judges
A Gazette Notice published in the Kenya Gazette on January 15, 2025, revealed that 11 vacancies for the Court of Appeal and five vacancies for the High Court have been officially revoked.
The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has revoked 16 vacancies it previously declared for the positions of Judge of the Court of Appeal and Judge of the High Court of Kenya, stirring controversy over the recruitment process.
A Gazette Notice published in the Kenya Gazette on January 15, 2025, revealed that 11 vacancies for the Court of Appeal and five vacancies for the High Court have been officially revoked.
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The JSC announced that the public notices declaring the vacancies, which had been issued earlier, would no longer stand.
"It is notified for information of the general public that the following Gazette Notices declaring vacancies in the Offices of Judges of the Superior Courts have been revoked," the notice read.
This revocation comes shortly after the commission had made efforts to address the judicial backlog.
The JSC had previously declared the vacancies in February and April of 2024, including a Gazette Notice No. 1076 on January 30 for 11 vacancies at the Court of Appeal and Gazette Notice No. 1271 on February 5 for five vacancies at the High Court.
The announcement follows a move by the JSC in July 2024, when it suspended the recruitment of 11 judges for the Court of Appeal.
This suspension was attributed to a directive from the National Treasury that reduced funding for the judicial process, as explained by Martha Koome, the JSC Chairperson.
The revocation of these vacancies has come at a time when the judiciary is under public scrutiny, with accusations of corruption and claims of collusion between the judiciary and the executive to undermine justice.
Despite this, the Court of Appeal remains an important judicial body, with 29 judges handling a substantial caseload.
As of May 2024, the Court of Appeal had 13,331 pending cases. In an effort to reduce this backlog, the JSC had proposed changes to the Judicature Act to increase the number of judges in the Court of Appeal from 30 to 70.
After these changes, the JSC declared 11 vacancies in February and invited applications.
By April 2024, the commission had shortlisted 41 candidates, including 32 current judges and nine lawyers.
However, the details surrounding the revocation have not been fully clarified.
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