Profiling Kenyatta Nyirenda: The judge who defied Malawi’s government to stop Covid-19 lockdown
Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda’s father, a member of Malawi’s liberation movement and a committed pan-Africanist, named his son after Kenya’s first president, Jomo Kenyatta. He could not have imagined that one day, his son would go on to help to draft Kenya’s current Constitution.
But Nyirenda’s impact in his own country, Malawi, has been even more profound. The parliamentary draftsman-turned-judge of the high court has presided over seminal cases, including the disputed presidential election in 2014. He made political enemies then when he ruled against the opposition — who were claiming that the election was rigged — on a technicality. This ruling allowed Peter Mutharika to ascend to the State House.
But now Nyirenda has found against the president in a couple of landmark judgments that have infuriated Mutharika’s administration.
Then, last month, when Mutharika announced a national lockdown, Nyirenda ordered an injunction against its implementation until the government could come up with some way to protect the country’s poorest and most vulnerable citizens.
This ruling forced Mutharika to announce a nationwide minimum wage equivalent monthly cash transfer to poor households. It also forced him to create a Covid-19 task force that included opposition leaders, civil society and public health experts.
Nyirenda has come under fierce criticism from government officials, who said that if the virus spread quickly then “the nation knows who to blame”. Nyirenda has also been attacked for failing to be “patriotic” in the face of a national crisis.
But analysts and civil society groups have praised him for maintaining judicial independence.
Boniface Dulani, a senior lecturer in the University of Malawi’s department of political and administrative studies, said that Nyirenda is preventing possible abuses of power by the government.
Dulani added that this principle was even more important because the current government is “basically a caretaker government with questionable credibility” — a reference to another major court decision earlier this year which set aside Mutharika’s re-election last year on the basis of electoral irregularities. New elections are scheduled for later this year.
“Patriotism is no substitute for doing something legally,” said Dulani. “Courts make rulings based on law, not on sentiment. Justice Nyirenda thinks he is being patriotic, too, by sticking to the law … Justice Kenyatta Nyirenda is a hero because he has reminded us that if we are to fight the pandemic using a lockdown, we must do so under the dictates of the law, but government has opted to react by disregarding the court proceedings or calling the judge names.”
Gift Trapence, chairperson of the Human Rights Defenders Coalition — the civil society group that initially opposed the government’s lockdown plans — praised the judge. “Justice Kenyatta is an example of how independent our courts are. They make their own judgments based on law and evidence … Malawi’s judiciary is one of the shining stars of Africa because of the professionalism of its bench.”
Kalekeni Kaphale, Malawi’s attorney general, does not agree with this assessment. He has been scathing of Nyirenda’s decision to suspend the lockdown ordered by the government, and has demonstrated his disdain by failing to participate in inter-party hearings on the judge’s injunction.
However, he said the government would comply nonetheless. “We will continue with some restrictions, but not those under the lockdown injunction,” Kaphale said.
Nyirenda’s sister, Emma Kaliya, a prominent women’s rights activist, noted that standing up to abuses of power was in the family’s blood.
“Our father was involved in the fight for liberation, before Kamuzu [Hastings Banda] arrived in 1957. He was a small politician. Our family car was used to help the party activities as Kamuzu campaigned. During the state of emergency of 1959 he was arrested and jailed in Nkhata Bay.
“There was a massacre later on as people demanded his release with others. He was in prison for 11 months. He refused to co-operate with the colonialists and refused to renounce the fight against colonialism,” she said,
- This story is part of a series called ‘On the Frontline’, first published in The Continent, which profiles some of the heroes on the frontline of Africa’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Download your free copy of The Continent here.
health literacy is an underestimation.
people like these need to know that being an expart in law does not mean he commands the same knowledge in health matters. this is an miscarriege of justice in fact its an ‘abortion’
He is an ugly man
Kenyatta should not be praised on this Judgement rather be rebuked for putting in danger lives of people in Malawi.We should thank God that the other countries locked down and we are like protected from those countries that made such noble decisions.
He looks like a wizard just finished flying
Our Hero NYirenda. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Malawi is the world’s laughing stock with the a stupid judge undermining efforts that have been effectively used used globally to halt community transmission of the corona virus. Clearly some idiot thinking that a ruling can control an epidemic. See what is going on in Tanzania, Somalia, Southern Sudan. Malawi is one more African statistic.
The good thing is that globally the efforts were used within the dictates of the Law of their Land(s). You do not just wake up and make an announcement that needs to be backed by Law. Globally, emergency parliamentary meetings were held to pass bills as quickly as possible, the bills were signed into law, as quickly as possible, and then directives were made based on those new or revised laws. What’s wrong with Malawi? A state president is not law, neither is a cabinet minister! Let’s learn to do things within the dictates of the Laws of the Land. The judge in question did nothing wrong, on the contrary, the current State President and his team did and are doing many wrong things.
I have never read any sensible comment from Kuswa Kuswa. This cadet has a big problem. Mwina wapenga poona kuti akutluka mboma soon.
Iwe ndi wopusa wakumwa madzi ometera gevo.
Mtumbuka weni weni woyipa mtima ndiye nthenda ndi iyi ikufalikra ponseponse not everything on earth is academic Mr.Dulani andi uyu oipa nkhope ndi mtima womweyi
Judge Kenyatta has one functioning eye that’s why he doesn’t fear Corona-virus.
Now it tell it why Emma Kalia looks very ugly. These people are ugly even in their hearts. Apart from looking at the law one should exercise logic
inuyo okongolanu ndiyetu perekani judgement yanu tiwone
Mr Dulani, nthawi yakwana mwayambanso kubwebweta zanu zija, poti ndi mchere wanu. Masiku ano mwasowatu ku banki, koma posachedwapa muyamba kubweretsa tima cheke ku banki-malipiro a zi ntchito yaukambelembele . Dyera lanuli mudzachita nalo khunyu. Musamalilre.
kani alibe mano mkamwa,,,,,no wonder sakuopa covid19
Had it been there was no lockdown injunction, no one in Malawi would have been infected. But thanks to Justice Kenyatta Nyirenda, Malawi is now infected. A sane judge would have issued the injunction against the corona virus. Kkkkkkkk
Another hero of Malawi I salute you Mr Kenyatta Nyirenda.You have saved more people from dying of hunger,Apa bwenzi anthu atayamba kumwalira.How can you force people to go for lockdown without food that is madness.Thank you Mr Kenyatta thank you.Long live our judges long live.Tonsefe sitinabadwe mufamily ya Munthalika Kut azitisewera ngati mpira.God bless Malawi.
Umbuli wakula, iyi inali lokodawuni yaing’ono, imene ikadalola anthu kuyenda ndi kugwira zinchito zawo ku madera awo. Pamenepa anthu afa ndi njala bwanji? Uwutu ndi mulili ndipo anthu atenga kovidi ambiri, adwala ambiri ndipo amwalira ambiri. Yakula kwambiri ndi nkhani ya sikono basi, pamene anzathu maiko ena ali pa lokodawuni, kuno wina wa stroke ai yayi chifukwa cha sikono.
you so stupid
Musatinamizapo apa. Ku ntchito kwathu we had to be given special clearance letters and IDs coz it was planned to be a total lockdown with heavy police and army presence. In addition, over 80% of the cases reported so far have been imported into Malawi. Remember one of them who came into Malawi from Mozambique on 2nd May, only to be found positive on 5th May? He came into Malawi already positive. Why not quarantine entrants at the borders in order to stop the importation (not yet spread for the virus has not yet seriously been spreading locally). Sitifa ambiri osadandaula.
An idiot of a judge. The only one who has ruled against a lockdown in the world.
You can lockdown yourself. Those of us that uphold the ruling will continue with our daily business and we will still live. The government has to learn to do things in accordance with the Law.
Justice and Fairness are very important in the running of the country by all sectors of Leadership. Otherwise, failure to abid by those Principles brings about the kicking in of Proverbs 29 Verse 4. Remember, God is not asleep, neither dead, He is watching.
So, where is Mr Arthur Peter Mutharika? In lockdown!