The marathon Supreme Court sessions are perfect demonstration of what we could achieve in our justice sector, if we put our minds and souls to it. This is what Kenyans wanted from the 2010 Constitution and the results continue giving them pride.
Veteran lawyers like James Orengo and John Khaminwa would tell you how it would have been impossible to have such a level of swiftness from the courts in the old constitution.
For instance, such a session would have dragged for nearly five years in the rare chance that anyone had the courage to do it. However, even lodging the case in court would have not been easy. Serving the respondents would have been a tall order and no one even trusted the judges.
Yet in the new 2010 Constitution this has been made easy that in each of the elections held after it, we had someone go to court with the latest session attracting seven petitions. All the frustrations from those disappointed by what the IEBC announced are encapsulated in those seven petitions. Their pain, anxieties and tensions are all in court. The contrary would have been disastrous; a people holding unresolved tensions never heal.
Yet you can be sure when the verdict is read out on Monday, parties in court would have no option than to profess publicly that they have accepted the verdict.
How I wish we did the same with corruption cases. If by a line or two in the 2010 Constitution we confined a presidential election to 14 days, we can do the same with corruption. Part of that effort is by implementing existing provisions in the Constitution particularly the Leadership and Integrity Chapter. We must make it harder for tainted people to rise to positions of influence.
A local daily reported that close to 70 elected leaders would have to divide their time between their new roles and court sessions. Is that the country we want? Most are hiding behind the assumption that they are innocent till proven guilty.
Timelines for corruption cases will definitely make it easier to implement that chapter. There are many other ways to achieve the same. We can do it in three to six months.
Corruption remains the greatest deterrent to progress and Kenya will never make progress until we address this issue. Never. People must be punished heavily as a deterrent. Stealing funds from national coffers is akin to treason.
In China, people are executed for economic crimes. It is the same story in Indonesia, Thailand and a few other countries. However, the story in Kenya must begin with the swiftness of our courts before we move to punishment. Our justice system has shown that it can be done. We look up to the same system to get us out of the stinking hole of corruption.
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