Chief Justice Martha Koome has rejected claims that the Judiciary oversteps its mandate when interpreting the Constitution, saying courts are exercising powers expressly given to them by the supreme law.
Speaking at a forum marking 16 years of the 2010 Constitution on Thursday, Koome said the Judiciary had earned the confidence of Kenyans, pointing to the growing use of courts to settle disputes and challenge decisions.
She said the Constitution gives courts the authority to interpret and apply the law, while also providing a clear system through which parties can challenge decisions they disagree with.
“Our judiciary has courageously interpreted the constitution,” she said, dismissing claims that courts go beyond their mandate when handling constitutional matters.
Koome explained that decisions made at lower levels of the Judiciary can be challenged through the established appeals process.
“If you are dissatisfied with decision from the magistrates, you can appeal in the High Court,Court of Appeal, and if the law allows, you can come all the way to the Supreme Court,” she said.
The Chief Justice also pushed back against criticism of corruption within the Judiciary, saying scrutiny of public resources should not focus on the courts alone.
She questioned why the Judiciary was being singled out when it receives less than one per cent of the national shareable budget.
“When you ask about corruption, you should have asked where does the other 99% of the shareable budget go?” she said.
“Are there corruption also in the ministries, in the procurement, in other things? Because you only zeroed in on Judiciary, you should have asked the other question.”
Koome said limited funding was also making it difficult for the Judiciary to expand services and establish more courts, particularly facilities that can help ordinary citizens resolve disputes closer to where they live.
“Our budget is so bigger, so that even as we say we want to reach the last mile, we have now 60 small courts. Everybody in the 150 court stations we have is asking for a small claims court because this is how you reach the ordinary mwananchi but the budget do not allow us to do so,” she said.
She said the Judiciary had prepared a master plan and roadmap aimed at expanding access to High Courts, magistrates’ courts, small claims courts and alternative justice systems across the country.
According to Koome, the Judiciary has already identified areas that require additional courts, but the plans remain affected by financial limitations.
“We still have a long way to go, and this is because of the budgetary constraints,” she said.
The Chief Justice further called for continued engagement between the Judiciary, Executive, Parliament and constitutional commissions, saying cooperation among the institutions was important in addressing gaps affecting public service delivery.
“At the end of the day, we are all serving one Kenyan,” she said.
The Judiciary was allocated Sh30.4 billion in the 2026/27 financial year. The allocation includes Sh927.4 million for the Judicial Service Commission, Sh26.9 billion for recurrent expenditure and Sh2.6 billion for development projects.
Parliament received Sh48.7 billion during the financial year, while county governments were allocated Sh428 billion as their equitable share of nationally raised revenue.