Only President Uhuru Kenyatta can sack me, AG Githu Muigai tells House team

Attorney General Githu Muigai.

Nairobi, Kenya: Attorney General (AG) Githu Muigai has dismissed a petition by the Law Society of Kenya to remove him from office, saying only the President has powers to do so.

LSK wants Muigai out over the handling of the Sh1.4 billion controversial payments to Goldenberg-related firms by the Government and had petitioned the National Assembly’s Justice and Legal Affairs Committee.

The committee however found itself in a quandary yesterday after it emerged the AG drafted a law last year that insulated him from removal and gave the President the sole role of doing so. The law, which came into force early last year, does not provide any clear procedure for the AG’s sacking, and only states the grounds under which the President can sack him.

During his presentation before the committee, Muigai said that his office cannot be categorised in the same manner as other constitutional offices, which have a clear procedure for removal of the holder.

Peculiar situation

“It is evident that the various holders of State offices are amenable to the processes peculiar to their respective offices. There is no singular residuary clause which governs the removal of the Attorney General either expressly or impliedly,” he said, adding that the committee has no jurisdiction to hear the petition by the LSK.

“This is the preserve of the President under the Office of the Attorney General Act and may amount to violation of Article 2(2) of the Constitution which enjoins every person to uphold the Constitution. The irreducible minimum in Cabinet is the President, the Deputy President and the Attorney General,” said Muigai.

The Committee is now considering introducing amendments to the Attorney General Act to give the National Assembly a say in the removal of the AG.

“We are dealing with an ordinary petition which will not help with the removal you are seeking. You need muscles but our hands are tied. We cannot have laws that make people slaves and there is nobody who is above the law including the President,” Committee Chairman Samuel Chepkonga told Mutua.