The Judiciary has disowned a letter circulating online that purported to detail alleged attempts by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua to influence a Supreme Court case on whether impeached public officers are eligible to contest elective positions.
Chief Justice Martha Koome, in a statement issued on Monday, August 17, said the letter did not originate from her office or any authorised organ of the Judiciary.
The Judiciary termed the document a deliberate fabrication, warning that it sought to exploit the name and institutional authority of the Chief Justice to push political narratives.
“The Judiciary wishes to categorically state that the letter is FAKE. It was neither authored nor issued by the Hon. Chief Justice, her Office, nor any authorised organ of the Judiciary,” the Judiciary stated.
The institution called on members of the public, journalists and other stakeholders to authenticate communications attributed to the Chief Justice or the Judiciary through official channels before sharing or acting on them.
The clarification followed the circulation of the document on social media, where it appeared to be an official Judiciary communication regarding a pending Supreme Court case.
The fabricated letter obtained by Vantage Ke on August 17 bore the Chief Justice's name and Judiciary branding. It purported to indicate that Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu had filed a complaint alleging attempts to influence her regarding a constitutional petition.
“The Judicial Service Commission issues this statement following a formal complaint lodged with the Commission by Hon. Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu, in which she reports sustained and deeply troubling attempts to procure her influence in connection with a matter currently pending before the Supreme Court, specifically, a constitutional petition seeking a determination on the eligibility of impeached public officers to contest for elective office,” the fake letter stated in part.
The document further alleged that former Chief Justice David Maraga and Wiper Party Leader and Senior Counsel Kalonzo Musyoka had approached Mwilu regarding the case involving impeached public officers.
It also purported to announce investigations targeting Maraga and Kalonzo, possible disciplinary proceedings and a referral of the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The fake letter emerged on the same day Gachagua filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal challenging a June High Court decision by Justices Ogola, Mrima and Mugambi that upheld his impeachment and rejected his bid to overturn his removal from office.
Gachagua maintains that the judges erred in law by declaring the Senate's impeachment final despite finding that his right to a fair hearing had been violated.
The latest incident comes days after another viral letter allegedly linked to the former Deputy President also surfaced. The document criticised Gachagua's political style and claimed former President Uhuru Kenyatta considered his conduct unsuitable for national leadership and had declined to meet him to discuss the political future of the vote-rich Mt Kenya region.
The Office of the Fourth President, Uhuru Kenyatta, through spokesperson Kanze Dena, dismissed the statement as fake, maintaining that it was fabricated and did not originate from Kenyatta's office.
Jubilee Deputy Party Leader Fred Matiang'i also criticised the document, alleging that it was part of a State-sponsored propaganda campaign intended to damage the opposition's reputation ahead of the 2027 General Election.
