Petitioner moves to court over Ruto’s protest victims compensation panel

A Nakuru-based surgeon has filed a petition at the High Court challenging President William Ruto’s recent establishment of a Presidential Panel of Experts to oversee the compensation of victims of demonstrations and public protests.

Magare Gikenyi claims that the President acted outside the Constitution by unilaterally creating the panel.

The petitioner argues that the Constitution does not grant the Head of State such powers. He cites Article 132(4), which only allows the President to establish an office in the public service on the recommendation of the Public Service Commission.

“The purported powers are an imaginary mirage which do not exist in our progressive Constitution,” reads the petition.

According to Dr Gikenyi, the functions of compensating victims of human rights violations are already assigned to existing state institutions, including the Judiciary, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), the Victims Protection Agency, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP).

He further argues that it is illogical for the Executive, which has been accused of causing injuries to citizens during protests, to purport to compensate the same victims.

“This is a duplication of duties, political in nature, and amounts to misuse of scarce public resources,” he argues.

The petition also questions the lack of transparency in the panel’s composition, remuneration, and terms of reference, noting that no competitive or merit-based process was followed.

Gikenyi contends that the move violates several constitutional provisions, including Articles 1, 2, 10, 73, 75, 129, 201, and 232, which demand accountability, transparency, and adherence to the rule of law.

“The action of the President will lead to loss of public confidence, wastage of resources, and abuse of political power,” he adds.

The petition seeks to have the court declare the panel unconstitutional, stop the expenditure of public funds on it, and safeguard the role of independent institutions already tasked with protecting citizens’ rights.