Judiciary Defends Judges’ Allowances, Says They Benchmark Parliament Rates

By Andrew Mbuva 

The Judiciary has defended the billions paid out annually in allowances to judges and senior officers, insisting its rates are pegged on those applied by the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC).

Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Wednesday, Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Winfridah Mokaya told MPs that the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) had aligned its structure with PSC benchmarks, not those of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC).

“Let me just confirm that the Judicial Service Commission benchmarks particularly with the Parliamentary Service Commission. So the rates we apply are comparable to what obtains in the PSC,” Mokaya said.

Her explanation, however, sparked uproar among MPs who accused the Judiciary of bypassing SRC guidelines, which constitutionally regulate the pay and benefits of public officers.

The dispute emerged as PAC examined Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu’s report for the year ending June 2023, which flagged irregular domestic travel and subsistence allowances paid to top judicial officers, including the Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justice, judges, magistrates, and senior staff.

According to the report, the Judiciary has been paying higher daily subsistence rates than those authorized by the SRC circular of February 2022. For instance, a JSC memo tabled before the committee showed the Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice each drawing Ksh.30,000 per day, judges and the Chief Registrar Ksh.25,000, and chief magistrates and senior staff Ksh.20,000.

Mathioya MP Dr. Edwin Mugo questioned why the Judiciary should unilaterally set rates, warning that unchecked discretion could burden taxpayers. “Who, then, regulates these allowances? Who sets the bar? Because SRC is mandated to do so,” he pressed.

Auditor-General officials also opposed the Judiciary’s stance, pointing out that it already has representation in SRC and should not grant itself preferential treatment.

But the Chief Registrar stood firm, citing Article 172 of the Constitution, which empowers the JSC to review judges’ terms and conditions. She added that their allowances were set before SRC published its circulars and later affirmed in court.

PAC has now demanded that the Judiciary table the Supreme Court ruling cited as the legal basis for its position, and provide clarity on how the contested rates were determined.