If anyone doubted that Kenya is truly undergoing a transformation, the new-look Judiciary is the evidence. Judges are operating with a confidence and independence that can only come from the knowledge that behind them is a new Constitution that has rebuilt the boundary between the Judiciary and the Executive.

Since Independence, that barrier has been eroded by successive governments as the Executive used threats, bribery, and intimidation to have its way in courts.

Yes, the new Constitution can work and the Judiciary is showing a glimpse of what is possible in the future.

Recent rulings by the High Court and Court of Appeal have not only resonated with the public mood, but have been made with the new Constitution in mind, recognising the need to move away from the past and usher in a fresh dispensation.

Poll calendar

On Tuesday the Court of Appeal ruled by a majority decision that elections should take place in March, but even the dissenting judge concurred that the Executive has no business trying to control the electoral calendar when the Constitution has bestowed the same on the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

In other words, neither President Kibaki nor Prime Minister can use the dissolution of Parliament as a means to fix the date of the General election.

Also important in yesterday’s ruling was the opinion of the five-judge Bench that the term of the current Parliament must end on January 14, 2013,  which is the date the current MPs were sworn- in to office.

This leaves no room for ambiguity and resolves with a finality a matter that created plenty of heat, as some legislators had assumed they would remain in office until March 4.

As the judges said, only President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga will remain in office after January 15 until the elections. This is to ensure there is no presumed power vacuum in the Executive.

The Judiciary is benefiting from reforms that include vetting of judges, a reform-minded Chief Justice, and a Constitution that entrenches their independence and removes the hidden hand of the Executive in judicial matters.

Of course it can still go horribly wrong. The vetting might allow a rotten official to remain in office or the anti-reformists in Government might massacre the new laws with crippling amendments that render them ineffective.

However, these remain in the realms of possibilities. Now that the date of the General Election is no longer in doubt, barring a reversal of the Appeal Court’s ruling by the Supreme Court, the IEBC must get its act together and begin rolling out its programmes.

The matter of voter registration hangs over the electoral body and threatens to put a damper on the process of political reform.

Rigging

As we stated yesterday, a return to manual voter registration will spell disaster for an election of this magnitude and should not be allowed.

It is not surprising that politicians are calling for the same since it is an easy way of stealing votes and rigging the elections as happened in 2007.

With the country divided down the middle by presidential campaigns that have taken the route of ethnic exclusion of some communities, it is important that the IEBC makes a clean break with the past.

With regard to the new-found desire for public interest litigation, the courts must remain the last resort.

Kenyans should try other avenues of arbitration otherwise the courts risk being swamped with frivolous suits that achieve nothing but waste the time of judges and magistrates.

 The journey of reforms is a long one and along the way will continue to face vicious opposition from those who have benefited from corruption, but we must not lose hope.

Just like the attempt to scuttle the Constitution was defeated in 2010, the roadblocks now facing its implementation are not insurmountable.

The foundation stones are being laid with the growing confidence in the Judiciary that was sorely lacking in 2007. There is much to hope for, and a reason to be thankful.