NAIROBI, Kenya Feb 5 – Lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi has sued seven Supreme Court judges for banning him and his law firm from ever appearing before them.
The Judges said they banned Ahmednassir over his continuous attacks on them which they described as demeaning. The lawyer has sustained attacks of the apex court judges, describing them as corrupt.
Ahmednasir, represented by his lawyer Issa Mansur, contends that the decision communicated to his law firm on January 18, 2024, by Supreme Court Registrar Letizia Wachira is both unlawful and unconstitutional.
In the petition filed Monday, Ahmednasir asserts that the letter received from the Supreme Court cites personal grievances held by the seven judges against him, accusing him of conducting a campaign in the broadcast, print, and social media aimed at scandalizing, ridiculing, and denigrating the Court.
He argues that the decision made by the seven judges does not stem from a judicial process exercising the Court’s constitutional and statutory jurisdiction as outlined in Article 163 of the Constitution or the Supreme Court Act. Rather, it represents an administrative decision without a legal foundation, lacking the juridical value of a judicial decision immune to challenge under the law, thus rendering it illegitimate.
Mansur emphasizes that the practical consequence of the Supreme Court’s decision is to ban Ahmednasir and his associates from appearing before the Court to represent their clients. This decision was communicated to them through a letter signed by Registrar L.M. Wachira two weeks ago.
The letter explicitly stated that Ahmednasir and his law firm should no longer have an audience before the Supreme Court, whether in person, through an employee of the firm, or any other individual acting on their behalf.
In response, Ahmednasir’s law firm, along with eleven of his employees, has also filed a petition challenging the ban. They have named the Supreme Court judges, the Supreme Court itself, and the Attorney General as respondents.
In their application, the firm, represented by Advocate Issa Mansur, argues that the decision made by the seven judges is administrative rather than judicial in nature. They contend that if the statements complained of made by Ahmednasir are defamatory, the Supreme Court had the option to initiate legal proceedings against him rather than resorting to a banishment from practicing before the Court.
