Chief Justice Martha Koome has urged security agencies to pursue and prosecute the financiers and organisers of political violence. She warned that arresting hired thugs without dismantling their networks would not end the growing threat to Kenya’s democracy.
Koome stated that political thuggery poses a danger to the rule of law and Kenyans’ constitutional freedoms, particularly as the country approaches the 2027 General Election.
She called for investigations to extend beyond those caught carrying out attacks to the individuals recruiting, financing, equipping, and directing violent groups.
“We cannot stop at arresting the young people recruited to perpetrate violence. We must follow the money, identify the financiers, and hold those who organise, fund, and deploy these groups accountable,” she said.
The Chief Justice made the remarks in Kieganguru, Maara Constituency, Tharaka-Nithi County, where she presided over the launch of the Annual Child Justice Service Month and the official opening of Maara Law Courts.
She argued that treating political violence as isolated criminal incidents, without investigating the networks coordinating the attacks, would allow the problem to persist.
“We cannot sustainably address political violence by dealing only with those found at the scene. We must pursue the people behind the violence. Every organised criminal activity has a network, and that network must be dismantled,” Koome said.
She challenged law enforcement agencies to establish who recruits the young people involved, who pays them, who provides resources, and who issues instructions.
According to Koome, failure to identify and hold the people behind these networks accountable risks creating a cycle where one group of perpetrators is arrested only for another to emerge.
She cited the Prevention of Organised Crimes Act, 2010, as providing a legal framework for addressing organised criminal activities, including recruitment into criminal groups and facilitating their operations. The Chief Justice said the law should be applied firmly to ensure that those financing and sustaining criminal networks are also held accountable.
Koome further warned that political goonism could be used to intimidate citizens and undermine their constitutional freedoms of expression, association, and peaceful assembly.
“No political leader, regardless of position or influence, should be allowed to mobilise violence against fellow citizens with impunity,” she said.
However, even as she called for firm action against those behind political violence, Koome cautioned against allowing public anger to influence judicial decisions, particularly on the release of arrested suspects on bail. She emphasised that the Judiciary must operate within the Constitution, which guarantees arrested persons the right to bail or bond on reasonable conditions unless compelling reasons are presented to justify denying them.
“We cannot expect the Judiciary to hold people in custody indefinitely simply because there is public anger about a particular offence. Our Constitution requires that every person be treated according to the law,” she said.
The Chief Justice urged authorities to act before political violence becomes entrenched or threatens the peaceful conduct of the 2027 General Election.
