Justice David Maraga, the Kenyan chief justice who stunned the world by nullifying President Uhuru Kenyatta’s win on grounds of irregularities has resigned.

Justice Maraga, 70, took off his robe as the country’s 15th chief justice in the post-colonial era, in a colourful ceremony that was held at the Supreme Court, Nairobi, on Monday. Maraga urged Kenyans to continue offering unwavering support to the country’s judicial system to ensure that various initiatives founded under his watch live to fruition.

“Today, I want to assure the entire nation that I leave behind a strong Judiciary, a professional and enthusiastic corps of judges and judicial officers as well as staff who are deeply committed to the administration of justice,” he said.

Having served at the Court of Appeal in Kisumu City and at the Judiciary Committee on Elections, Maraga was appointed by President Kenyatta in October 19, 2016, to replace Dr Willy Mutunga who had served his term.

Conservative background

Cut from a conservative religious background as a Seventh-Day Adventist member, Maraga grabbed headlines after he told the panelists that he would not sit on the bench on Saturdays- a day that he religiously observes the Sabbath.

And, reflecting on how many questioned how he would juggle the legal duties and the dictates of his faith, he said: “In my interview for the position of the Chief Justice, I was asked whether I would sit on Saturday, my Sabbath day. I understood it was between the job and living by faith. I decided to live out [of] my faith and said I would not sit on Saturday. Thereafter, God took over and the rest is history. He gave me a job and fought for me all the battles throughout the term I served as CJ.’’

Throughout his stint as the country’s leader of the judiciary, Justice Maraga had a frosty relationship with the Executive, headed by President Uhuru Kenyatta. It all started when he led a six-judge bench that nullified the 2017 presidential election on grounds of electoral anomalies hence planting bad blood between the two arms of government.

Cold war with Executive

It degenerated into finger pointing as Uhuru-led administration kept blaming the Judiciary of acquitting those charged in corruption cases and jeopardising the war against graft. In its defence, the Judiciary decried shoddy investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions as the triggers of collapse of cases.

The CJ would then complain of mistreatment and cash-crunch that had been premeditated to clamp down on the functions of the Judiciary. It grew so worse in Justice Maraga at some point in 2019 openly expressed his intention to snub public events headed by the Executive for lack of recognition.

At the backdrop of it is an on-going impasse over the appointment of 41 judges yet to be approved by the president. The State House has said the refusal to clear the list was occasioned by the appointment of ‘tainted judges’ who had bad track records.

He passes the button to his deputy—Justice Philomena Mwilu—who equally has tussles with the Executive. He will retire in his home in Nakuru County, Kenya.