A lobby group, Sheria Mtaani, has defended the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Renson Ingonga against accusations that he is responsible for the rising number of case withdrawals in court.
Through its founder, Shadrack Wambui, the group stated that the DPP’s decisions on whether or not to prosecute are guided strictly by law and his constitutional mandate.
Speaking on behalf of the group, lawyer Danstan Omari announced that Sheria Mtaani has instructed him to take legal action against what it terms the “weakest link” in the fight against corruption—the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
“Before the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution, the DPP’s office was under the Attorney General. Kenyans demanded change, saying a prosecutor could not also be an investigator. That is why the independent office of the DPP was created under Article 157 of the Constitution,” Omari explained.
He added that the DPP enjoys an eight-year non-renewable term and cannot be directed by any person or authority when deciding to charge or prosecute cases.
Omari dismissed claims that the DPP has been arbitrarily withdrawing cases, noting that many files forwarded to the office from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) are rejected for failing to meet the legal threshold.
“The narrative that the DPP is recklessly withdrawing matters is misleading. In fact, in some instances, courts have rejected applications for withdrawal. In such cases, the DPP has appealed but lost. Ultimately, it is the court not the DPP that makes the final decision on withdrawals,” he said.
On corruption cases, Omari emphasized that the responsibility of identifying suspects lies with the EACC, which remains the main investigative body. He dismissed attacks on the DPP as baseless, pointing out that several petitions filed against Ingonga at the Public Service Commission have since been withdrawn for lack of merit.
“The DPP’s role is strictly to prosecute. The EACC, just like the DCI, can only investigate it can never be allowed to prosecute. This is the global best practice,” Omari stated.
He concluded that only the DPP, Renson Ingonga, has the constitutional mandate to decide on prosecutions, while all other prosecutors act under his authority.
“The weakest link in the fight against corruption is at the EACC, not the DPP. The DPP should be given space to discharge his constitutional mandate without undue interference,” Omari added
