Ngilu wants the next Chief Justice to be a woman

By Mourice Seretta

Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu has said that it is time that Judicial Service Commission, (JSC) that is currently conducting interviews to fill the post of the Chief Justice considered a woman to fill the position.

In a statement, Governor Ngilu opines that there could never be a better moment to have The First Woman Chief Justice in this country than right now when we are in the process of filling the position of the head of one of the three arms of Government.

“It is not lost on us that already the other two arms of Government namely, the Executive and the Legislature are headed and deputized by men. Also since the promulgation of the 2010 constitution the trend has been to have women deputize men as Chief Justice. It’s now time to have a woman leading the Judicial arm of government,” Ngilu said.

Ngilu further said that highly qualified, competent and experienced women candidates are being interviewed for the position of Chief Justice.

“Even as we head towards transition next year, let’s avoid excluding women from the high table conversations to shape the future of the country. We must always remember that Women form more than 52% of the total population of Kenya. No wonder this country cannot develop with 48% making all the important decisions sometimes convoluted and not real people driven. It has been like trying to walk on one leg.” The Kitui Governor explained.

She said that having women at the high table must not be an afterthought, a favor or an act of magnanimity and tokenism but it must be an active ingredient in crafting the development framework of this nation.

JSC shortlisted three women for the interviews.

The three are Prof Patricia Mbote,Justice Martha Koome and Alice Yano.