Greetings President William Ruto. I believe that my letter finds you in utmost good health.
I support your fight against corruption. This is the surest path for Kenya's economic and social transformation.
However, endemic corruption cannot be fought through executive fiat. It must be fought within the confines of the Constitution and the rule of law. I say so because under Kenya's constitutional scheme of separation of powers; the Judiciary, like the Executive and Legislature, is an independent arm of the government.
Article 160 (1) avers that in the exercise of judicial authority, the Judiciary as constituted by Article 161 shall be subject only to the Constitution and the law and shall not be subject to the control or direction of any person or authority.
Your Excellency, your recent public spurt and threats against unnamed magistrates and judges are happening at a time when a number of Kenyans have pending suits such as the constitutionality of the appointment of Chief Administrative Officers.
This is likely to be construed to mean that you are intimidating and /or superintending the Judiciary. It is absolutely necessary that the independence of the Judiciary is jealously guarded lest Kenyans think that judges and magistrates are under threat to dish out favourable judgments and rulings.
Whereas the public is aware that complaints exist with regard to miscarriage of justice, there is a constitutional mechanism provided to deal with errant and corrupt magistrates and judges.
Articles 168 and 172 mandate the Judicial Service Commission, to inter alia, receive complaints against, investigate and remove from office or otherwise discipline judges and magistrates respectively.
It is, therefore, incumbent upon any Kenyan (including yourself) to follow this constitutional pathway to assist the JSC in getting rid of errant and corrupt magistrates and judges.
Rather than public spurts, your functionaries should as soon as possible file a petition at the JSC for necessary administrative action in accordance with the Constitution and the rule of law.
Your Excellency, subjecting yourself to the Constitution and the rule of law is the highest guarantee that your administration is accountable to Kenyans. In the event that anyone challenges the presidency/Executive for allegedly going beyond the bounds of the Constitution and the law, the Judiciary will render its decisions unencumbered.
Your Excellency, under Articles 131 and 132, the Constitution sets the authority and functions of the president respectively. By virtue of provisions of Article 3 (1) of the Constitution, you are obligated to respect, uphold and defend the Constitution and the rule of law.
Your Excellency, I pray that God grants you favour to steer Kenya to greater social and economic transformation and that you will never allow Kenya to slip back into the darkness of despotism and tyrannical ideologies. There exists no benevolence in dictatorship.