Judicial Service Commission has condemned the alleged mistreatment, harassment and intimidation of a magistrate by Mumias East MP Peter Salasya.
In a statement on Wednesday, JSC said it has deployed a team to the area to further investigate the matter, with the aim of taking an appropriate action ‘in line with its mandate.’
“The Commission has received information that Hon Peter Salasya, MP Mumias East, has been threatening, intimidating and harassing a Hon. Magistarte presiding over a case in which he is party. These persistent threats during the hearing and after delivery of the judgement have been reported at the Kakamega central police station. The commission condemns such acts in the strongest terms possible,” JSC said.
Reports emerged on Tuesday that Salasya was on the run after being reported at the police station by the magistrate who was identified as Gladys Kiama.
Salasya threatened to end the life of the magistrate after delivering a ruling against his favor.
In her ruling, she ordered the lawmaker to pay Kshs500,000 to businessman Robert Lutta, who had sued him for failing to pay him an amount of money that he owes him since December last year.
Salasya has however denied claims of intimidating the magistrate.
“Mimi nilikuwa nimetravel. Flight yangu ya Kisumu to Nairobi ilikuwa saa mbili. Nikakuwa kwa mkutano hapa Garden Hilton kuanza saa tano nimekuwa pale,” he said on social media.
He further dispelled claims of running away from the law.
The Law Society of Kenya has also broken silence on the matter, calling for the arrest of Salasya.
“The Law Society of Kenya urges the DCI to conduct a thorough, speedy, and impartial investigation to determine the facts surrounding the alleged threats. The safety of judicial officers is critical to maintaining the integrity of the Judiciary and we expect that all necessary steps will be taken to provide a secure environment for the Magistrate and indeed all judicial officers to carry out their mandate without interference,” said LSK.
