Operations in courtrooms nationwide grounded over Coronavirus

All courtrooms nationwide remained empty Monday with zero activities following the directive by Chief Justice David Maraga to suspend all appeals, hearings and mentions for two weeks to minimize spread of the Coronavirus in the country.

This even as the National Council on the administration of Justice issues additional guidelines that among them prohibits members of the public from court premises during the deferment period.

On Monday morning, hundreds of Kenyans thronged the Milimani Law Courts seeking clarification on their pending cases and after hours of waiting chief Magistrate Francis Andayi gave them an ear directing all mentions to be heard on the 15th of April allowing those with cash bails and fines to get in the court premises.

In Bungoma, there was confusion at Bungoma Law Courts on Monday after hundreds of litigants were denied access to the court premises.

Police officers who presented suspects for plea taking were denied entry into the premise, leaving them stranded.

In Mombasa, chief magistrate Edna Nyaloti deferred the plea for a case involving two directors of a real estate development firm faced with four counts of evading income tax payment of 49, 785, 611 Million shillings  sighting the need for prevention measures against the Corona virus pandemic.

Following directives issued on Sunday by the Chief Justice  David Maraga all cases except serious ones will be dealt with at police stations, there will be no open court appearances all conferences among others.

The directive affirmed by an  internal memo dated 16th of March stating ” Members of the public will not be allowed within court premises, each court should maintain a skeleton staff of three including a court administrator, and a court assistant. The guidelines are to apply to all courts of appeal stations and supreme court. All other staff are expected to work from home unless instructed otherwise.”