By Chief Justice Willy Mutunga
I first met Mutula in July 1973 when I enrolled to read for my Master
of Laws degree in the Faculty of Law, University of Dar es Salaam.
Mutula was in his third and final year of study for his Bachelor of
Laws degree. I quickly found out he was one of the outstanding students
in his class. Dar was a place for hard work, but this did not stop us,
the Kenyan students in Dar, from posing for pretty photographs that were
carried in the print media in one of the many media pieces on Mutula.
We also welcomed him back in Dar after his marriage in December 1973. We
were overjoyed and Mutula wore the coat of his wedding suit for the
occasion!
Mutula wrote his exams in March 1974 and before leaving for Kenya, he
gave me a telephone number of his relative with a request that I relay
his examination results as soon as they were out. I was very proud as a
Kenyan to communicate his record-breaking academic feat when Mutula
became the first East African to obtain a first-class degree in law in
the history of the Faculty of Law, University of East Africa, Dar es
Salaam.
Mutula co-authored a brilliant dissertation with George Masese, his
classmate and now a practising Advocate in Kisii as third year student.
They wrote on peasants and the co-operative movement in Kenya using a
Marxist-Leninist methodology. I have always believed that at Dar, Mutula
came to understand how the capitalist system works. He used his
brilliant faculties to prove that Marx and Lenin were right in how that
system worked! And how that system, if well understood, could enrich
lawyers, too!
I saw a lot of Mutula while he was at the Kenya School of Law, but
saw more of him when employed by the firm of Kakuli & Mati
Advocates. I had worked for this firm before I went for further studies
in Dar.
He worked very hard and soon set up his firm. Mutula was always
focused and worked hard to achieve his goals. I had occasion to do some
briefs for Mutula when I was not teaching law at the Faculty of Law at
the University of Nairobi. There were many closures of the university in
those days.
Mutula was kind enough to loan me Ksh10,000 to help me buy a sports
Mazda car, which I paid back by undertaking legal briefs for him. At
some point, we thought we could be legal partners, but I chose the path
of the academy and activism. Although our political paths were
distinctly different, we remained friends and deeply respected each
other’s political positions.
There is one act of humanity Mutula carried out which I will never
forget. Upon my release from detention on October 20, 1983, he sought me
out, gave me some money and quickly facilitated the renewal of my
practising certificate as an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya.
He was then the President of the Law Society of Kenya. I got my
certificate and in January 1984, I was a sub-tenant of one of my close
friends and former student, Joe Nzioka. I had a means of livelihood,
thanks to these two friends. As a freed detainee, I was shunned by many,
but Mutula did what a friend should always do, help friends in need. I
am sure there were possible political consequences for his action, but
that did not deter him at all.
Mutula will also be remembered for his focused stewardship as
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and the promulgation of
the Constitution of Kenya in 2010. He stood out as a brilliant
interpreter of the Constitution and courageously guided its
implementation through his legal advice. He worked tirelessly on
drafting the various statutes that were the core to the implementation
of the new Constitution.
Mutula gave me tremendous support when I assumed the Office of the
Chief Justice. He supported the Judiciary in its assertion of
independence. He attended the launch of the Judiciary Transformation
Framework and supported its implementation. Mutula never missed any of
our functions at the Judiciary, that in itself signalling a lot of
political goodwill from the Ministry of Justice.
He played a pivotal role in setting up the National Council for the
Administration of Justice, the assembly line for the justice sector in
Kenya. Both of us were clear that when it comes to national matters,
there was the need for robust independence of institutions but a
constructive inter-dependence between them to achieve goals in the
national interest.
Mutula was honest and outspoken on issues of justice and law. I
admired his courage, which gave all of us in the Judiciary extra energy
to carry out our transformation.
Mutula is one of the pioneers of the African Bar in Kenya, whose
brilliance, professionalism and practice will remain a beacon to
aspiring lawyers.
I saw a lot of Mutula during the presidential petition. He was one of
the lawyers in the CORD team. One of the observers in that petition was
his classmate in Dar, the Chief Justice of Tanzania, His Lordship
Mohammed Chande Othman. Their reunion was a great occasion. I also saw
him at the funeral of Mrs Ruth Waki on April 18, 2013 when, in his usual
candour, he criticised the Supreme Court. His death nine days later was
a great shock to me.
I send my heartfelt and sincere condolences to his family, the people
of Makueni who elected him to the Senate, his many friends in Kenya and
abroad.
May the Almighty Allah rest his soul in eternal peace.
