Fund Judiciary properly

Chief Justice Martha Koome yesterday told Parliament that the Judiciary plans to hire additional 20 judges in the next three months to help deal with poll petitions expected after the August General Election. The Judiciary is grossly understaffed, with the CJ stressing the need to increase the current number of judges to at least 200 in order to serve the 50 million Kenyans appropriately.

Underfunding and understaffing are songs the Judiciary has sung for far too long. Today, the Judiciary is operating on a budget deficit of Sh21.9 billion, according to Justice Koome. The courts cannot clear cases backlog and deliver justice if they do not have enough resources to do so. National Treasury must provide these resources through proper funding.