Lawyer John Khaminwa speaks on concern over his safety after BBI Appeal hearing
Senior Counsel John Khaminwa has spoken after reports emerged that persons said to be police offices visited his office demanding money following submission over the BBI Appeal hearing on Friday, July 3.
Khaminwa said that the persons who visited his office were not police officers but imposters who asked him for money.
"They claimed to be police officers on duty but I did not get the impression that they were officers at all. They asked for money but we did not give them," Khaminwa stated.
Concern over Khaminwa's safety was raised by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) on Saturday, Julu 3 noting that the lawyer was the opposing counsel in the BBI Appeal hearing.
In a statement, KHRC said police officers visited Khaminwa's offices over his submission adding: "We have received worrying reports of police officers visiting the offices of Senior Counsel Khaminwa ostensibly for his submission in the BBI Appeal."
On Friday, Khaminwa argued that President Uhuru Kenyatta violated the law by unconstitutionally attempting to amend the constitution.
In his submission, the Senior Counsel stated that Uhuru disrespected the courts even before the High Court nullified the BBI bill. sighting the Presidents refusal to appoint six judges to the Court of Appeal.
"The President of the Republic of Kenya has filed an application and I am inviting you very respectfully, My Lords, that you do not take note of the application at all.
"While he was at Kisumu, he made certain remarks about judges. My Lord, he has failed to promote two High Court judges who nullified the BBI (Justices Joel Ngugi and George Odunga). When you come to the court you must come with clean hands, the president has not come to this court with clean hands at all," Khaminwa said.
In his Saturday submission, Khaminwa defended the constitution referring to a point in Kenya's history when persons with a different opinion against the government of the day were exiled.
"There was rampant corruption in the country, people died in suspicions circumstances, people like Ngugi wa Thiongo left the country. The 2010 constitution was supposed to take care of these.
"The judiciary was not spared. Some judges died under suspicious circumstances. These were things that new constitution was supposed to take care of," Khamiwa said.
